Genetic structure and ecological niche segregation of Indian gray mongoose (Urva edwardsii) in Iran.

ABSTRACT: Combining genetic data with ecological niche models is an effective approach for exploring climatic and nonclimatic environmental variables affecting spatial patterns of intraspecific genetic variation. Here, we adopted this combined approach to evaluate genetic structure and ecological niche of the Indian gray mongoose (Urva edwardsii) in Iran, as the most western part of the species range. Using mtDNA, we confirmed the presence of two highly differentiated clades. Then, we incorporated ensemble of small models (ESMs) using climatic and nonclimatic variables with genetic data to assess whether genetic differentiation among clades was coupled with their ecological niche. Climate niche divergence was also examined based on a principal component analysis on climatic factors only. The

SUBMITTER: Oboudi R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8571580 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature