Skull shape of a widely distributed, endangered marsupial reveals little evidence of local adaptation between fragmented populations.

ABSTRACT: The biogeographic distribution of diversity among populations of threatened mammalian species is generally investigated using population genetics. However, intraspecific phenotypic diversity is rarely assessed beyond taxonomy-focused linear measurements or qualitative descriptions. Here, we use a technique widely used in the evolutionary sciences-geometric morphometrics-to characterize shape diversity in the skull of an endangered marsupial, the northern quoll, across its 5,000 km distribution range along Northern Australia. Skull shape is a proxy for feeding, behavior, and phenotypic differentiation, allowing us to ask whether populations can be distinguished and whether patterns of variation indicate adaptability to changing environmental conditions. We analyzed skull shape in 101 indivi

SUBMITTER: Viacava P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7520215 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature