Abstract
Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) are endemic to Australia and occur as two geographically isolated populations separated by the Nullarbor Plain, a vast arid region in southern Australia. We studied genetic variation in Musk Duck populations at coarse (eastern versus western Australia) and fine scales (four sites within eastern Australia). We found significant genetic structure between eastern and western Australia in the mtDNA control region (ΦST = 0. 747), one nuclear intron (ΦST = 0.193) and eight microsatellite loci (FST = 0.035). In contrast, there was little genetic structure between Kangaroo Island and adjacent mainland regions within eastern Australia. One small population of Musk Ducks in Victoria (Lake Wendouree) differed from both Kangaroo Island and the remainder of mainland eastern Australia, possibly due to genetic drift exacerbated by inbreeding and small population size. The observed low pairwise distance between the eastern and western mtDNA lineages (0.36%) suggests that they diverged near the end of the Pleistocene, a period characterised by frequent shifts between wet and arid conditions in central Australia. Our genetic results corroborate the display call divergence and Mathews' (Austral Avian Record 2:83-107, 1914) subspecies classification, and confirm that eastern and western populations of Musk Duck are currently isolated from each other.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 2105-2120 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | Conservation Genetics |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 2010 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- Arid zone
- Microsatellite
- Mitochondrial DNA
- Nuclear intron
- Nullarbor Plain
- Waterfowl
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
- Genetics
Cite this
East-west genetic differentiation in Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) of Australia suggests late Pleistocene divergence at the Nullarbor Plain. / Guay, P. J.; Chesser, R. T.; Mulder, R. A.; Afton, A. D.; Paton, D. C.; McCracken, Kevin.
In: Conservation Genetics, Vol. 11, No. 6, 12.2010, p. 2105-2120.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - East-west genetic differentiation in Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) of Australia suggests late Pleistocene divergence at the Nullarbor Plain
AU - Guay, P. J.
AU - Chesser, R. T.
AU - Mulder, R. A.
AU - Afton, A. D.
AU - Paton, D. C.
AU - McCracken, Kevin
PY - 2010/12
Y1 - 2010/12
N2 - Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) are endemic to Australia and occur as two geographically isolated populations separated by the Nullarbor Plain, a vast arid region in southern Australia. We studied genetic variation in Musk Duck populations at coarse (eastern versus western Australia) and fine scales (four sites within eastern Australia). We found significant genetic structure between eastern and western Australia in the mtDNA control region (ΦST = 0. 747), one nuclear intron (ΦST = 0.193) and eight microsatellite loci (FST = 0.035). In contrast, there was little genetic structure between Kangaroo Island and adjacent mainland regions within eastern Australia. One small population of Musk Ducks in Victoria (Lake Wendouree) differed from both Kangaroo Island and the remainder of mainland eastern Australia, possibly due to genetic drift exacerbated by inbreeding and small population size. The observed low pairwise distance between the eastern and western mtDNA lineages (0.36%) suggests that they diverged near the end of the Pleistocene, a period characterised by frequent shifts between wet and arid conditions in central Australia. Our genetic results corroborate the display call divergence and Mathews' (Austral Avian Record 2:83-107, 1914) subspecies classification, and confirm that eastern and western populations of Musk Duck are currently isolated from each other.
AB - Musk Ducks (Biziura lobata) are endemic to Australia and occur as two geographically isolated populations separated by the Nullarbor Plain, a vast arid region in southern Australia. We studied genetic variation in Musk Duck populations at coarse (eastern versus western Australia) and fine scales (four sites within eastern Australia). We found significant genetic structure between eastern and western Australia in the mtDNA control region (ΦST = 0. 747), one nuclear intron (ΦST = 0.193) and eight microsatellite loci (FST = 0.035). In contrast, there was little genetic structure between Kangaroo Island and adjacent mainland regions within eastern Australia. One small population of Musk Ducks in Victoria (Lake Wendouree) differed from both Kangaroo Island and the remainder of mainland eastern Australia, possibly due to genetic drift exacerbated by inbreeding and small population size. The observed low pairwise distance between the eastern and western mtDNA lineages (0.36%) suggests that they diverged near the end of the Pleistocene, a period characterised by frequent shifts between wet and arid conditions in central Australia. Our genetic results corroborate the display call divergence and Mathews' (Austral Avian Record 2:83-107, 1914) subspecies classification, and confirm that eastern and western populations of Musk Duck are currently isolated from each other.
KW - Arid zone
KW - Microsatellite
KW - Mitochondrial DNA
KW - Nuclear intron
KW - Nullarbor Plain
KW - Waterfowl
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=78049361626&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=78049361626&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10592-010-0097-5
DO - 10.1007/s10592-010-0097-5
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:78049361626
VL - 11
SP - 2105
EP - 2120
JO - Conservation Genetics
JF - Conservation Genetics
SN - 1566-0621
IS - 6
ER -