Ten polymorphic microsatellite loci for the endangered Buena Vista Lake shrew (Sorex ornatus relictus)

The ornate shrew (Sorex ornatus) is restricted to the vanishing wetlands of California, USA and Baja California, Mexico. Several subspecies of ornate shrews are considered ‘mammal species of special concern’ in California by the Department of Fish and Game, and one (Sorex ornatus relictus) has recently been listed as endangered. Populations of shrews around Buena Vista Lake have been diminished or extirpated due to habitat deterioration and human development. In order to study the patterns of genetic variation in isolated populations of Buena Vista Lake shrews, we developed 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci. There were 6–27 alleles per locus, and the loci had heterozygosity values that ranged from 20 to 80%. In addition, we screened 20 different populations of S. ornatus, eight species within two subfamilies of shrews (Soricinae and Crocidurinae), as well as in a mole (Talpidae, Neurotrichus gibbsii), to determine if these loci could be informative in other species as well.     

An analysis of two Myosorex species (Soricidae) from the Early Pliocene site of Langebaanweg (West coast, South Africa) using geometric morphometrics, linear measurements, and non-metric characters

This represents the first study of the soricid community from the Early Pliocene site of Langebaanweg (LBW) which is represented by four species, two of which belong to the soricid genus Myosorex (Forest shrew). Using geometric morphometrics the two Myosorex fossil species are compared with each other, and the extant western and eastern Cape species: Myosorex varius, M. cafer and M. longicaudatus. In addition, the results from an analysis of a number of non-metric characters and linear measurements on the fossil species are presented. The mandibles of the fossil species are characterized by extremely broad teeth, ascending rami which are relatively gracile and differ in shape and size from modern species, and the existence of a number of primitive features of the mandibles and teeth. This evidence is interpreted as indicating that the two LBW Myosorex species represent an archaic lineage now extinct in southern Africa.     

鼩鼱科六个物种背部针毛的微观结构及其分类学意义

鼩鼱类动物多样性丰富,但因体型小、外形相似使其物种鉴定比较难。本文利用数码互动显微系统,对鼩形目鼩鼱科6 个物种背部针毛的鳞片和髓质微观结构进行比较。结果表明,6 种鼩鼱鳞片结构类型分为花瓣型、椭圆型、斜长方型、长戟型、竹节型、草芽型、波浪型、平滑型、锯齿型9 种类型,具有种的特异性,能 够用来鉴定这6 个鼩鼱物种;而髓质结构类型多数表现为条纹型,不能单独用来鉴定物种。鼩鼱针毛的鳞片微观结构作为鼩鼱科动物的分类指标,具有可行性。     

Isolation and characterization of polymorphic microsatellite DNA markers in two shrew species,Sorex unguiculatus and S. caecutiens

We isolated six microsatellite markers from the partial genomic libraries of two Sorex shrews, S. unguiculatus and S. caecutiens, and examined their allelic variation. All loci showed high allelic variation ranging from 15 to 19 alleles and all but one locus conformed to Hardy–Weinberg expectations in the species where the loci were isolated. Cross-species amplifications showed that all primers derived from S. unguiculatus were useful for S. caecutiens, while among primer sets derived from S. caecutiens only one was useful for S. unguiculatus. Accordingly, at least five microsatellite markers were useful in S. caecutiens and three in S. unguiculatus.     

Tripartite genetic subdivisions in the ornate shrew (Sorex ornatus)

We examined cytochrome b sequence variation in 251 ornate shrews (Sorex ornatus) from 20 localities distributed throughout their geographical range. Additionally, vagrant (S. vagrans) and montane (S. monticolus) shrews from four localities were used as outgroups. We found 24 haplotypes in ornate shrews from California (USA) and Baja California (Mexico) that differed by 1-31 substitutions in 392 bp of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence. In a subset of individuals, we sequenced 699 bp of cytochrome b to better resolve the phylogeographic relationships of populations. The ornate shrew is phylogeographically structured into three haplotype clades representing southern, central and northern localities. Analysis of allozyme variation reveals a similar pattern of variation. Several other small California vertebrates have a similar tripartite pattern of genetic subdivision. We suggest that topographic barriers and expansion and contraction of wetland habitats in the central valley during Pleistocene glacial cycles account for these patterns of genetic variation. Remarkably, the northern ornate shrew clade is phylogenetically clustered with another species of shrew suggesting that it may be a unique lowland form of the vagrant shrew that evolved in parallel to their southern California counterparts.     

Soricidae (Mammalia) from the Early Pleistocene of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Soricid remains collected from Bed I of Olduvai Gorge are described. The great majority of the specimens are mandibles. A survey of the mandibles of living African species revealed many differences in characters of the lower teeth and jaw that can be used for identification. On the basis of these characters, nine species are distinguished in the Olduvai collection, of which six are well enough preserved to permit a discussion of their relationships to living species. Three new species and one new subspecies are described. All the Olduvai shrews differ in some respects from their nearest living relatives; three species are close to species from Makapansgat, Swartkrans and Sterkfontein, RSA, though there appear to be slight differences. A change in the soricid fauna takes place within Bed I, interpreted as due to increasing aridity.