Watershed boundaries and geographic isolation: patterns of diversification in cutthroat trout from western North America.

ABSTRACT:

Background

For wide-ranging species, intraspecific variation can occur as a result of reproductive isolation from local adaptive differences or from physical barriers to movement. Cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii), a widely distributed fish species from North America, has been divided into numerous putative subspecies largely based on its isolation in different watersheds. In this study, we examined mtDNA sequence variation of cutthroat trout to determine the major phylogenetic lineages of this polytypic species. We use these data as a means of testing whether geographic isolation by watershed boundaries can be a primary factor organizing intraspecific diversification.

Results

We collected cutthroat trout from locations spanning almost the entire geographic range of thi

SUBMITTER: Loxterman JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3320548 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature