Quantifying the spatiotemporal dynamics in a chorus frog (Pseudacris) hybrid zone over 30 years.

ABSTRACT: Although theory suggests that hybrid zones can move or change structure over time, studies supported by direct empirical evidence for these changes are relatively limited. We present a spatiotemporal genetic study of a hybrid zone between Pseudacris nigrita and P. fouquettei across the Pearl River between Louisiana and Mississippi. This hybrid zone was initially characterized in 1980 as a narrow and steep "tension zone," in which hybrid populations were inferior to parentals and were maintained through a balance between selection and dispersal. We reanalyzed historical tissue samples and compared them to samples of recently collected individuals using microsatellites. Clinal analyses indicate that the cline has not shifted in roughly 30 years but has widened significantly. Anthropogenic an

SUBMITTER: Engebretsen KN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4979724 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature