Reliable DNA barcoding performance proved for species and island populations of comoran squamate reptiles.

ABSTRACT: In the past decade, DNA barcoding became increasingly common as a method for species identification in biodiversity inventories and related studies. However, mainly due to technical obstacles, squamate reptiles have been the target of few barcoding studies. In this article, we present the results of a DNA barcoding study of squamates of the Comoros archipelago, a poorly studied group of oceanic islands close to and mostly colonized from Madagascar. The barcoding dataset presented here includes 27 of the 29 currently recognized squamate species of the Comoros, including 17 of the 18 endemic species. Some species considered endemic to the Comoros according to current taxonomy were found to cluster with non-Comoran lineages, probably due to poorly resolved taxonomy. All other species for whic

SUBMITTER: Hawlitschek O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3772021 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature