Mitogenomes reveal the timing and distribution of divergence events among trans-Beringian birds.

ABSTRACT: Glacial cycles operating across Beringia have repeatedly exposed large swathes of the Bering Land Bridge, intermittently isolating and reuniting North American and Eurasian taxa. In high-latitude birds, these cycles are hypothesized to have been important in driving divergence and speciation. These repeated events have resulted in multiple trans-Beringian avian sister populations of varying degrees of taxonomic depth distributed across modern Beringia. We asked how these cyclic pulses have affected the temporal distribution and number of overall divergence events across Beringia. We sequenced full mitogenomes at high depth from 39 lineage pairs of varying levels of divergence, totaling 432 individuals of seven orders, 14 families, and 49 species from both Eurasia and North America. We then

SUBMITTER: Collier KA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12875246 | biostudies-literature | 2026

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature