10.6084/m9.figshare.7041791.v1
Daniel Jablonski
Daniel
Jablonski
Zoltán T. Nagy
Zoltán
T. Nagy
Aziz Avcı
Aziz
Avcı
Kurtuluş Olgun
Kurtuluş
Olgun
Oleg V. Kukushkin
Oleg V.
Kukushkin
Barbod Safaei-Mahroo
Barbod
Safaei-Mahroo
David Jandzik
David
Jandzik
Cryptic diversity in the smooth snake (Coronella austriaca): Supplementary material
Brill Online
2018
Asia
Colubridae
Europe
glacial refugia
phylogeny
refugia-within-refugia
Serpentes
speciation
Ecology not elsewhere classified
2018-09-19 07:22:55
Journal contribution
https://brill.figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Cryptic_diversity_in_the_smooth_snake_Coronella_austriaca_Supplementary_material/7041791
The
smooth snake, <i>Coronella austriaca</i>, is
a common snake species widespread in the Western Palearctic region. It does not
form conspicuous morphological variants and, although several evolutionary
lineages have been distinguished based on the analyses of the mitochondrial DNA
sequences, only two subspecies with very limited distribution have been
traditionally recognized. Here we present an mtDNA phylogeography of the
species using geographically extended sampling while incorporating
biogeographically important areas that have not been analyzed before, such as
Anatolia, Crimea, and Iran. We find that the smooth snake comprises 14 distinct
phylogenetic clades with unclear mutual relationships, characterized by complex
genetic structure and relatively deep divergences; some of them presumably of Miocene
origin. In general, the biogeographic pattern is similar to other Western
Palearctic reptiles and illustrates the importance of the main European
peninsulas as well as the Anatolian mountains, Caucasus, and Alborz Mts. in
Iran for the evolution of the present-day diversity. Considerable genetic
structure present in the smooth snake populations within these large areas
indicates the existence of several regional Plio-Pleistocene refugia that
served as reservoirs for dispersal and population expansions after the glacial
periods. The current taxonomy of <i>C.
austriaca</i> does not reflect the rich genetic diversity, deep divergences,
and overall evolutionary history revealed in our study and requires a thorough
revision. This will only be possible with an even higher-resolution sampling
and integrative approach, combining analyses of multiple genetic loci with
morphology, and possibly other aspects of the smooth snake biology.