Phylogeography of Arenaria balearica L. (Caryophyllaceae): Evolutionary history of a disjunct endemic from the Western Mediterranean continental islands

Although it has been traditionally accepted that Arenaria balearica (Caryophyllaceae) could be a relict Tertiary plant species, this has never been experimentally tested. Nor have the palaeohistorical reasons underlying the highly fragmented distribution of the species in the Western Mediterranean r...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Bobo-Pinilla, Javier, Barrios de León, Sara B., Seguí Colomar, Jaume, Fenu, Giuseppe, Bacchetta, Gianluigi, Peñas de Giles, Julio, Martínez-Ortega, María Montserrat
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2016
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/152595
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/152595
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Mediterranean
Phylogeography
Island evolution
Stasis
Hercynian
Arenaria
AFLP
Plastid DNA
Descripción
Sumario:Although it has been traditionally accepted that Arenaria balearica (Caryophyllaceae) could be a relict Tertiary plant species, this has never been experimentally tested. Nor have the palaeohistorical reasons underlying the highly fragmented distribution of the species in the Western Mediterranean region been investigated. We have analysed AFLP data (213) and plastid DNA sequences (226) from a total of 250 plants from 29 populations sampled throughout the entire distribution range of the species in Majorca, Corsica, Sardinia, and the Tuscan Archipelago. The AFLP data analyses indicate very low geographic structure and population differentiation. Based on plastid DNA data, six alternative phylogeographic hypotheses were tested using Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC). These analyses revealed ancient area fragmentation as the most probable scenario, which is in accordance with the star-like topology of the parsimony network that suggests a pattern of long term survival and subsequent in situ differentiation. Overall low levels of genetic diversity and plastid DNA variation were found, reflecting evolutionary stasis of a species preserved in locally long-term stable habitats.