<i>Caenorhabditis</i> diversity on Pohnpei, Micronesia, provides evidence that the Elegans Supergroup has its roots in the Americas and diversified in the Pacific en route to Asia.

ABSTRACT: The microscopic nematode Caenorhabditis elegans stands unrivaled as a model for developmental biology, neurobiology, and genetics, but fundamental aspects of its ecology, biogeography, and natural history remain unknown. Leveraging recent findings that place its center of diversity in the cool, high-elevation forests of Hawaii, we performed an intensive survey of the Caenorhabditis fauna of Pohnpei, a high island in Micronesia that is home to the largest patch of high-elevation forest between Hawaii and East Asia. We found nine species of Caenorhabditis, five of them new, but not C. elegans. Most species were limited to the hot lowlands but three spanned the elevational range and one was found only in the cloudforest. Using the distribution of Caenorhabditis<

SUBMITTER: Rockman MV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12485960 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature