Old lake versus young taxa: a comparative phylogeographic perspective on the evolution of Caspian Sea gastropods (Neritidae: Theodoxus).

ABSTRACT: The Caspian Sea has been a highly dynamic environment throughout the Quaternary and witnessed major oscillations in lake level, which were associated with changes in salinity and habitat availability. Such environmental pressures are considered to drive strong phylogeographic structures in species by forcing populations into suitable refugia. However, little is actually known on the effect of lake-level fluctuations in the Caspian Sea on its aquatic biota. We compared the phylogeographic patterns of the aquatic Neritidae snail genus Theodoxus across the Pontocaspian region with refugial populations in southern Iran. Three gene fragments were used to determine relationships and divergence times between the sampled populations in both groups. A dated phylogeny and statistical haplotyp

SUBMITTER: Sands AF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6837181 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature