Diversification of the Alpine chipmunk, Tamias alpinus, an alpine endemic of the Sierra Nevada, California.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The glaciation cycles that occurred throughout the Pleistocene in western North America caused frequent shifts in species' ranges with important implications for models of species divergence. For example, long periods of allopatry during species' range contractions allowed for the accumulation of differences between separated populations promoting lineage divergence. In contrast, range expansions during interglacial periods may have had homogenizing effects via increased gene flow following secondary contact. These range dynamics are particularly pronounced in the Sierra Nevada, California, given the complex topography and climatic history of the area, thus providing a natural laboratory to examine evolutionary processes that have led to the diversity patterns observed t

SUBMITTER: Rubidge EM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4077034 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature