Delineating species along shifting shorelines: Tropheus (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from the southern subbasin of Lake Tanganyika.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Species delineation is particularly challenging in taxa with substantial intra-specific variation. In systematic studies of fishes, meristics and linear measurements that describe shape are often used to delineate species. Yet, little is known about the taxonomic value of these two types of morphological characteristics. Here, we used Tropheus (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from the southern subbasin of Lake Tanganyika to test which of these types of characters best matched genetic lineages that could represent species in this group of stenotypic rock-dwelling cichlids. We further investigated intra-population variation in morphology. By linking this to a proxy of a population's age, we could assess the evolutionary stability of different kinds of morphological markers.

SUBMITTER: Van Steenberge M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6234679 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature