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Post‐glacial range revolutions in South European hares ( Lepus spp.): Insights from ancient DNA and ecological niche modelling
Author(s) -
Lado Sara,
Farelo Liliana,
Forest Vianney,
Acevedo Pelayo,
Dalén Love,
MeloFerreira José
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of biogeography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 158
eISSN - 1365-2699
pISSN - 0305-0270
DOI - 10.1111/jbi.13454
Subject(s) - range (aeronautics) , ecological niche , introgression , ancient dna , environmental niche modelling , ecology , glacial period , biology , last glacial maximum , geography , zoology , paleontology , population , habitat , genetics , gene , materials science , demography , sociology , composite material
Aim The distribution of hares ( Lepus spp.) in southern Europe was markedly different at the Last Glacial Maximum. Historical hybridization during range replacements led to high frequencies of mt DNA introgression from Lepus timidus into populations of three other species in northern Iberian Peninsula, even though L. timidus subsequently disappeared from the region. We use palaeontological records to provide new insights on the biogeographic history of these range replacements, combining ancient DNA and ecological niche modelling. Location Southern France. Taxon Hares (genus Lepus ). Methods DNA was extracted from hare bones collected at Neolithic sites in southern France (5.5–7.5 thousand years before present; kyr bp ) with uncertain species assignment. One mt DNA fragment was sequenced and 27 SNP s from 11 nuclear genes with species‐diagnostic information were genotyped. Distributions of L. granatensis , L. europaeus , and L. timidus were modelled using spatial and bioclimatic predictors, and the favourability function. Each model was transferred to 6 kyr bp and favourabilities were combined to determine the species with the highest environmental favourability in each sampled locality. Results Ancient DNA analysis showed that the screened specimens belong to L. granatensis , a species presently confined to the Iberian Peninsula, but carried mt DNA haplotypes from L. timidus . Niche models show that L. granatensis achieved highest favourability in southern France 6 kyr bp reinforcing the molecular evidences. Main conclusions L. granatensis replaced L. timidus populations from Iberia to southern France, being present in this region 5.5 kyr bp . Subsequent westwards invasion of L. europaeus likely replaced these L. granatensis populations towards northern Iberia, establishing current ranges. Despite successive species replacements, introgressed mt DNA haplotypes from L. timidus mark the distribution of the species in northern Iberian Peninsula before it disappeared in the region. Characterizing complex biogeographic histories of interacting species is a key to understand processes that led to current distributions of genetic diversity.