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Citation for Study 1912

About Citation title: "Phylogeography across a continent: the evolutionary and demographic history of the North American Racer (Serpentes: Colubridae: Coluber constrictor)".
About This study was previously identified under the legacy study ID S1889 (Status: Published).

Citation

Burbrink F., Fontanella F., Pyron A., Guiher T., & Jimenez C. 2007. Phylogeography across a continent: the evolutionary and demographic history of the North American Racer (Serpentes: Colubridae: Coluber constrictor). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, null.

Authors

  • Burbrink F.
  • Fontanella F.
  • Pyron A.
  • Guiher T.
  • Jimenez C.

Abstract

Most phylogeographic studies examine organisms that do not have transcontinental distributions and therefore the genetic and temporal effects of barriers across an entire continent cannot be assessed with respect to a single species. Only 2.3% of all squamates (snakes and lizards) in the United States are distributed continuously across the continent. We examined the phylogeographic structure, lineage age, and demographic patterns using sequences from the mtDNA gene cytochrome b of the racer (Coluber constrictor), one of the few abundant transcontinental snakes that occurs in many biomes. We also compared the signature of population expansion among lineages relative to geographic location, with the expectation that only postglacial expansion will occur in those lineages nearest to or in formerly glaciated areas. Our results indicate that this complex is comprised of six lineages differing greatly in geographic size, with the largest (a central US clade) being ~26 times greater than the smallest (a lineage restricted to the Florida Panhandle and nearby portions of adjacent northern States). Most of the six lineages appear to be separated at previously identified genetic barriers for many vertebrates with similar ranges. Lineage diversification in this species began in the late Miocene, separating populations in the Florida Peninsula from the remainder of the US. Major lineage diversification continued throughout the Pliocene and early Pleistocene. Moreover, four of the six lineages occur east of the Mississippi River, with only two distinctly young (~1.5 mya) lineages found west of the Mississippi River (one occurs west of Continental Divide). All methods of demographic inference, including the mismatch distribution, Fu and Lis D* and Tajimas D*, and Bayesian Skyline Plots revealed population expansion for every lineage, regardless of size or proximity to formerly glaciated areas, occurring in the mid-to-late Pleistocene, perhaps owing to the generalist ecological nature of this successful snake. Population expansion for lineages found east of the Mississippi River occurred earlier and was much greater than those found west of the River.

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  • Canonical resource URI: http://purl.org/phylo/treebase/phylows/study/TB2:S1912
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