Genetic population dynamics of the critically endangered scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini) in the Eastern Tropical Pacific.

ABSTRACT: The scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini, is a Critically Endangered, migratory species known for its tendency to form iconic and visually spectacular large aggregations. Herein, we investigated the population genetic dynamics of the scalloped hammerhead across much of its distribution in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP), ranging from Costa Rica to Ecuador, focusing on young-of-year animals from putative coastal nursery areas and adult females from seasonal aggregations that form in the northern Galápagos Islands. Nuclear microsatellites and partial mitochondrial control region sequences showed little evidence of population structure suggesting that scalloped hammerheads in this ETP region comprise a single genetic stock. Galápagos aggregations of adults were not comprised o

SUBMITTER: Harned SP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9797937 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature