Diversification and historical demography of the rapid racerunner (Eremias velox) in relation to geological history and Pleistocene climatic oscillations in arid Central Asia

Publication date: Available online 26 October 2018Source: Molecular Phylogenetics and EvolutionAuthor(s): Jinlong Liu, Xianguang Guo, Dali Chen, Jun Li, Bisong Yue, Xiaomao ZengAbstractLate Cenozoic stepwise aridification has transformed Central Asia into an arid environment, and the Pleistocene climatic oscillations exerted further ecological impact. Therefore, both aridification and glaciation would have considerably influenced the evolution of many midlatitude species in arid Central Asia (ACA). However, strong biotic evidence supporting this role is still lacking. Here, we test this perspective using a phylogeographic study of Eremias velox, which is an arid-adapted lizard, across ACA using sequences from mitochondrial cytochrome b and 12S rRNA genes. Phylogenetic analyses of the concatenated data, including 595 specimens from 107 localities, revealed ten geographically correlated lineages that diverged by 1.1–15.4% for the cytochrome b gene and 1.0–10.3% for the 12S rRNA gene, which were estimated to have coalesced ∼ 6.23 million years ago. Ancestral area estimations suggested that E. velox originated from the Iranian Plateau and then dispersed into Central Asia. The intensification of aridification across Central Asia during the Late Pliocene may have facilitated the rapid radiation of this arid-adapted lizard throughout this vast territory. Subsequently, the geological events (e.g., uplift of the Kopet-Dagh, Tianshan and Greater Caucasus Mountains) and glacial os...
Source: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution - Category: Molecular Biology Source Type: research