Species Limits and Hybridization in Andean Leaf-Eared Mice (<i>Phyllotis</i>).

ABSTRACT: Leaf-eared mice (genus Phyllotis) are among the most widespread and abundant small mammals in the Andean Altiplano, but species boundaries and distributional limits are often poorly delineated due to sparse survey data from remote mountains and high-elevation deserts. Here, we report a combined analysis of mitochondrial DNA variation and whole-genome sequence (WGS) variation in Phyllotis mice to delimit species boundaries, to assess the timescale of diversification of the group, and to examine evidence for interspecific hybridization. Estimates of divergence based on cytb data suggest that most diversification of Phyllotis occurred during the past 3 million years. Consistent with the Pleistocene Aridification hypothesis, our results suggest that diversification

SUBMITTER: Quiroga-Carmona M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12256280 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature