Phylogeography of Potamon ibericum (Brachyura: Potamidae) identifies Quaternary glacial refugia within the Caucasus biodiversity hot spot.

ABSTRACT: Refugia are critical for the maintenance of biodiversity during the periods of Quaternary climatic oscillations. The long-term persistence of refugial populations in a large continuous refugium has resulted in a homogenous pattern of genetic structure among populations, while highly structured evolutionary lineages characterize the restriction of refugial populations to smaller subrefugia. These mechanisms have resulted in the identification of hot spots of biodiversity within putative glacial refugia. We studied phylogeography of Potamon ibericum (Brachyura: Potamidae) in the drainages of the western Caucasus biodiversity hot spot (i.e., Colchis and the Caucasus) to infer spatial genetic structure and potential refugia for a freshwater crab in this region. These areas have traditio

SUBMITTER: Parvizi E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6476761 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature