Morphological and genetic evidence for two evolutionarily significant units (ESUs) in the South American fur seal, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Arctocephalus gazella</Emphasis> |
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Authors: | Larissa Rosa de Oliveira Joseph I Hoffman Erika Hingst-Zaher Patricia Majluf Mônica M C Muelbert João Stenghel Morgante William Amos |
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Institution: | 1.Laboratório de Biologia Evolutiva e Conserva??o de Vertebrados (LABEC), Instituto de Biociências,Universidade de S?o Paulo,Sao Paulo,Brazil;2.Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS),Porto Alegre,Brazil;3.Centro de Estudos Costeiros,Limnológicos e Marinhos da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (CECLIMAR/UFRGS),Tramandai,Brazil;4.Department of Zoology,University of Cambridge,Cambridge,UK;5.Laboratório de Mastozoologia,Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de S?o Paulo,Sao Paulo,Brazil;6.Unidad de Biología de la Conservación,Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH),Lima,Peru;7.Laboratório de Mamíferos Marinhos e Tartarugas Marinhas, Departamento de Oceanografia,Programa de Pós-Gradua??o em Oceanografia Biológica,Rio Grande,Brazil |
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Abstract: | The South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) is widely distributed, occurring along both the Atlantic and the Pacific coasts of South America. Previous work suggests
there may be more than one subspecies, highlighting the need for further study. Here, we combine traditional and geometric
morphometric analysis of skull shape and size with genetic data to compare two populations of South American fur seals, one
from Uruguay and one from Peru. As a control group we used material from the closely related species Arctocephalus gazella. Both techniques of morphometric analysis reveal pronounced geographic variation in size and shape of the skull, with Peruvian
specimens (n = 102) being larger than Uruguayan skulls (n = 133) and significant shape differences concentrated in the rostral region. Similarly, seven highly polymorphic microsatellite
loci reveal highly significant differences in allele frequency. Moreover, Bayesian analysis implemented using the program
structure reveals two separate clusters corresponding perfectly to the two populations, with an assignment test correctly placing over
98% of specimens in their population of origin. This degree of differentiation for both genetic and morphological traits suggests
complete and possibly prolonged isolation to the extent that we believe these populations should be considered distinct evolutionarily
significant units. |
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Keywords: | South American fur seal Arctocephalus australis Skull morphometrics Microsatellite Evolutionarily significant units (ESUs) |
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