Open AccessReproductive isolation between oviparous and viviparous lineages of the E urasian common lizard Z ootoca vivipara in a contact zone
Author(s) -
Cornetti Luca,
Belluardo Francesco,
Ghielmi Samuele,
Giovine Giovanni,
Ficetola Gentile F.,
Bertorelle Giorgio,
Vernesi Cristiano,
Hauffe Heidi C.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
biological journal of the linnean society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.906
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1095-8312
pISSN - 0024-4066
DOI - 10.1111/bij.12478
Subject(s) - biology , oviparity , subspecies , introgression , reproductive isolation , lizard , genetic algorithm , evolutionary biology , incipient speciation , hybrid zone , gene flow , zoology , squamata , phylogeography , genetic divergence , skink , ecology , phylogenetic tree , genetic variation , genetics , genetic diversity , population , gene , demography , sociology
Contact zones between two evolutionary lineages are often useful for understanding the process of speciation because the observed genetic pattern reflects the history of differentiation. The E urasian lacertid lizard Z ootoca vivipara is a potentially interesting model for studying the role of reproductive mode in the speciation of squamate reptiles because it has both oviparous ( Z ootoca vivipara carniolica ) and viviparous ( Z ootoca vivipara vivipara ) populations that have recently been shown to be genetically distinct. We studied a newly‐discovered syntopic area of these two Z ootoca subspecies in the central I talian A lps using genetic markers to investigate the level of introgression between them. Patterns of genetic differentiation in a fragment of the mitochondrial DNA cytb gene and a set of nuclear microsatellites show that the speciation process is complete in this area, with no evidence of recent introgression. Phylogenetic and genotypic divergence suggests that the two subspecies have experienced long independent evolutionary histories, during which genetic and phenotypic differences evolved. The possible roles of biogeography, reproductive mode, and cytogenetic differentiation in this speciation process are discussed. © 2015 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2015, 114 , 566–573.