Genetic turnovers and northern survival during the last glacial maximum in European brown bears

The current phylogeographic pattern of European brown bears (Ursus arctos) has commonly been explained by postglacial recolonization out of geographically distinct refugia in southern Europe, a pattern well in accordance with the expansion/contrac‐ tion model. Studies of ancient DNA from brown bear...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Ersmark, Erik, Baryshnikov, Gennady, Higham, Thomas, Argant, Alain, Castaños Ugarte, Pedro María, Döppes, Doris, Gasparik, Mihaly, Liden, Kerstin, Germonpre, Mietje, Lipecki, Grzegorz, Marciszak, Adrian, Miller, Rebecca, Moreno García, Marta, Pacher, Martina, Robu, Marius, Rodríguez Varela, Ricardo, Rojo Guerra, Manuel, Sabol, Martin, Spassov, Nikolai, Stora, Jan, Valdiosera, Christina, Villaluenga Martínez, Aritza, Stewart, John R., Dalén, Love
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2019
País:España
Institución:Universidad del País Vasco
Repositorio:Addi. Archivo Digital para la Docencia y la Investigación
OAI Identifier:oai:addi.ehu.eus:10810/68122
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10810/68122
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:LGM, mtDNA, phylogeography, refugia, Ursus arctos
LGM
mtDNA
phylogeography
refugia
Ursus arctos
Descripción
Sumario:The current phylogeographic pattern of European brown bears (Ursus arctos) has commonly been explained by postglacial recolonization out of geographically distinct refugia in southern Europe, a pattern well in accordance with the expansion/contrac‐ tion model. Studies of ancient DNA from brown bear remains have questioned this pattern, but have failed to explain the glacial distribution of mitochondrial brown bear clades and their subsequent expansion across the European continent. We here pre‐ sent 136 new mitochondrial sequences generated from 346 remains from Europe, ranging in age between the Late Pleistocene and historical times. The genetic data show a high Late Pleistocene diversity across the continent and challenge the strict confinement of bears to traditional southern refugia during the last glacial maximum (LGM). The mitochondrial data further suggest a genetic turnover just before this time, as well as a steep demographic decline starting in the mid‐Holocene. Levels of stable nitrogen isotopes from the remains confirm a previously proposed shift toward increasing herbivory around the LGM in Europe. Overall, these results suggest that in addition to climate, anthropogenic impact and inter‐specific competition may have had more important effects on the brown bear's ecology, demography, and genetic structure than previously thought.

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