Contrasting patterns of genetic structure in two species of the coral trout Plectropomus (Serranidae) from east and west Australia: introgressive hybridisation or ancestral polymorphisms

Inter-specific genetic relationships among regional populations of two species of grouper (Plectropomus maculatus and Plectropomus leopardus) were examined using mitochondrial and nuclear markers. mtDNA revealed contrasting regional inter-specific patterns whilst nuclear markers revealed contrasting patterns among markers, irrespective of region. In eastern Australia (EA) the species form a single mtDNA lineage, but the two species are reciprocally monophyletic in Western Australia (WA). This supports previous evidence for hybridisation between these species on the east coast. WA P. leopardus forms a sister relationship with the EA P. leopardus-maculatus clade while WA P. maculatus is more basal and sister to the P. leopardus lineages, indicating mtDNA does not suffer from incomplete lineage sorting for these species. In contrast, one of three nuclear markers (locus 7-90TG) differentiated the species into two reciprocally monophyletic clades, with no evidence of hybridisation or ancestral polymorphism. The remaining two nuclear markers (2-22 and ETS-2) did not separate these two species, while distinguishing other plectropomid species, suggesting incomplete lineage sorting at these nuclear loci. These results together with coalescence analyses suggest that P. leopardus females have hybridised historically with P. maculatus males and that P. maculatus mitochondria were displaced through introgressive hybridisation and fixation in the P. maculatus founder population on the Great Barrier Reef. The contrasting regional patterns of mtDNA structure may be attributed to Quaternary sea-level changes and shelf width differences driving different reef configurations on each coast. These reef configurations have provided opportunities for local scale interaction and reproduction among species on the narrower EA continental shelves, but not on the broader WA continental shelves.