0000000001311322
AUTHOR
Laura Kvist
Gene flow in the European coal tit, Periparus ater (Aves: Passeriformes): Low among Mediterranean populations but high in a continental contact zone
Abstract Extant phylogeographical patterns of Palearctic terrestrial vertebrates are generally believed to have originated from glacial range fragmentation. Post-Pleistocene range expansions have led to the formation of secondary contact zones among genetically distinct taxa. For coal tits (Periparus ater), such a contact zone has been localized in Germany. In this study, we quantified gene flow between Fennoscandian and southern European coal tits using a set of 13 microsatellite loci. STRUCTURE analysis revealed four genetic clusters, two occurring on Mediterranean islands. German populations were genetically admixed but introgression of southern alleles was evident for Fennoscandian popu…
Evolution and genetic structure of the great tit (Parus major) complex
The great tit complex is divided into four groups, each containing several subspecies. Even though the groups are known to differ markedly on morphological, vocal and behavioural characters, some hybridization occurs in the regions where they meet. The great tit has often been referred to as an example of a ring species, although this has later been questioned. Here, we have studied the genetic structure and phylogenetic relationships of the subspecies groups to clarify the evolutionary history of the complex using control region sequences of the mitochondrial DNA. The subspecies groups were found to be monophyletic and clearly distinct in mitochondrial haplotypes, and therefore must have h…
Where is the line? Phylogeography and secondary contact of western Palearctic coal tits (Periparus ater: Aves, Passeriformes, Paridae)
In this study, a phylogeographic scenario of the coal tit (Periparus ater) was reconstructed based on a fragment of the mitochondrial control region, and within- and between-population genetic diversity was analysed with a focus on the western Palearctic breeding range. We inferred a first pan-European delimitation of a postulated secondary contact zone among coal tits from the north-eastern Palearctic ater subspecies group and those from the south-western Palearctic abietum group. Generally, between-population differentiation was greatest in the Mediterranean range, which was explained by a greater separation in multiple Pleistocene refuge areas compared to the lower differentiation across…
Phylogeography of a Palaearctic sedentary passerine, the willow tit (Parus montanus)
We analysed variation of the mitochondrial control region from willow tits through its Palaearctic distribution range. Although we found high amount of genetic variation (π=1.114%), there was almost no differentiation between subspecies or geographical localities. This may be because of a combination of several ecological and genetic factors, including a relatively homogenic habitat through the distribution range, lack of geographical barriers, high gene flow and a large long-term effective population size. On the contrary, in the songar tit, which is sometimes considered to be conspecific with the willow tit, the mitochondrial lineages seem to correlate with the geographical locality and a…
Return flight to the Canary Islands – The key role of peripheral populations of Afrocanarian blue tits (Aves: Cyanistes teneriffae) in multi-gene reconstructions of colonization pathways
Abstract Afrocanarian blue tits (Cyanistes teneriffae) have a scattered distribution on the Canary Islands and on the North African continent. To date, the Canary Islands have been considered the species’ main Pleistocene evolutionary center, but their colonization pathways remain uncertain. We set out to reconstruct a dated multi-gene phylogeny and ancestral ranges for Cyanistes tit species including the currently unstudied, peripheral Libyan population of C. t. cyrenaicae. In all reconstructions the most easterly and westerly peripheral populations (in Libya and on La Palma) represented basal offshoots of C. teneriffae. These two peripheral populations shared all four major indels and dif…
Does fragmentation of wetlands affect gene flow in sympatric Acrocephalus warblers with different migration strategies?
Wetlands are naturally patchy habitats, but patchiness has been accentuated by the extensive wetlands loss due to human activities. In such a fragmented habitat, dispersal ability is especially important to maintain gene flow between populations. Here we studied population structure, genetic diversity and demographic history of Iberian and North African populations of two wetland passerines, the Eurasian reed warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus and the moustached warbler Acrocephalus melanopogon. These species are closely related and sympatric in our study sites, but the reed warbler is a long-distance migrant and widespread bird while the moustached warbler is resident or migrates over short d…
Habitat Preferences for Territory Selection by the Endangered Eastern Iberian Reed BuntingEmberiza Schoeniclus witherbyi
Summary. Given the 80% decline of the eastern Iberian reed bunting Emberiza schoeniclus witherbyi breeding population in recent decades, our aim was to identify the habitat components selected during territory establishment and to characterise the vegetation features that are positively or negatively selected at the territory scale. GLMM were used to explain the occurrence of territories in 11 wetlands. Fourteen variables with four vegetation dominance categories were analysed with respect to habitat composition, while occupancy of seven vegetation classes and 12 reed structural parameters were analysed with respect to habitat structure. The proportion of reed-cattails (Typha) measured by t…
A multi-gene approach reveals a complex evolutionary history in the Cyanistes species group
Quaternary climatic oscillations have been considered decisive in shaping much of the phylogeographic structure around the Mediterranean Basin. Within this paradigm, peripheral islands are usually considered as the endpoints of the colonization processes. Here, we use nuclear and mitochondrial markers to investigate the phylogeography of the blue tit complex (blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus, Canary blue tit C. teneriffae and azure tit C. cyanus), and assess the role of the Canary Islands for the geographic structuring of genetic variation. The Canary blue tit exhibits strong genetic differentiation within the Canary Islands and, in combination with other related continental species, provides a…
Population differentiation in the marginal populations of the great tit (Paridae: Parus major)
The major subspecies group of the great tit, Parus major, has experienced demographic and spatial expansions during the last century in several sites at the edges of its distribution range. These expansions, although temporarily very even, have resulted in dissimilar patterns of molecular diversity. Populations locating at regions of contact to other subspecies groups (in Amur, Kirghizia–Kazakhstan, and Iran) show divergence from central population by nuclear and mitochondrial markers. In Amur, gene flow from minor group could be detected based on the existence of private minor alleles in the major population. In Kirghizia and Kazakhstan, the bokharensis and major groups share almost all th…
Habitat preference of endangered Eastern Iberian Reed BuntingsEmberiza schoeniclus witherbyi
Capsule Careful management is required to maintain or create habitats with the correct proportions of rush with reeds that are preferred by this subspecies. Aims To determine the habitat requirements of Eastern Iberian (Western Iberian Reed Buntings were not included in the study) Reed Buntings Emberiza schoeniclus witherbyi, a subspecies endemic to a few marshes in France, Spain and Morocco, with a population of 254–360 breeding pairs. Methods Twenty-five wetlands in Spain were surveyed and presence/absence of Iberian Reed Buntings was deteremined together with data on 41 environmental variables. The relationships between the birds and habitat data were investigated using glm. Results Prop…
Data from: Gene flow in the European coal tit, Periparus ater (Aves: Passeriformes): low among Mediterranean populations but high in a continental contact zone
Extant phylogeographic patterns of Palearctic terrestrial vertebrates are generally believed to have originated from glacial range fragmentation. Post-Pleistocene range expansions have led to the formation of secondary contact zones among genetically distinct taxa. For coal tits (Periparus ater), such a contact zone has been localized in Germany. In this study, we quantified gene flow between Fennoscandian and southern European coal tits using a set of 13 microsatellite loci. STRUCTURE analysis revealed four genetic clusters two of these on Mediterranean islands. German populations were genetically admixed but introgression of southern alleles was evident for Fennoscandian populations. In t…