The taxonomic status of Myotis nesopolus larensis (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) and new insights on the diversity of Caribbean Myotis.

ABSTRACT: Myotis nesopolus currently comprises two subspecies. The nominate subspecies (M. n. nesopolus) occurs on the Caribbean islands of Curaçao and Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles, whereas M. n. larensis is known from mainland South America in northeastern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela. Our Maximum Likelihood phylogenetic analyses of cytochrome-b gene sequences recovered M. nesopolus as a paraphyletic group, with M. n. nesopolus and M. n. larensis as non-sister lineages. The haplotype network indicates that these two subspecies do not share any haplotypes and are in different evolutionary trajectories. Additionally, these two subspecies can be distinguished on the basis of qualitative and quantitative morphological traits. This pattern supports the r

SUBMITTER: Novaes RLM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7889575 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature