Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) DNA markers were used to characterize the genetic diversity and relationships in wild species of the genus Aegilops. Fifty populations, which included the species Aegilops biuncialis (UUMM), Ae. neglecta (UUMMNN), Ae. ovata (UUMM), Ae. ventricosa (DDNN) and Ae. triuncialis (UUCC) were selected. These populations are distributed in the Iberian peninsula and Balearic islands. Five AFLP selective primer combinations generated a total of 527 amplification products of which 517 (98.10%) detected polymorphisms. Aegilops neglecta showed the least variation in contrast with Ae. biuncialis that presented the highest degree of polymorphism. Genetic relationships within the populations were evaluated by generating a similarity matrix based on the Jaccard index. In the resulting phenogram Ae. ventricosa appears segregated from the other species, probably owing to the influence of the D genome. The species sharing the U genome are located in the main cluster. The branching pattern of the U genome group reflects the proximity of the species sharing the M genome. Ae. biuncialis and Ae. ovata are clearly separated suggesting that the super index system should be used to differentiate the M genomes of both species. The variation among populations within species in relation to their geographical origin and results previously obtained by the authors using biochemical and molecular markers are discussed.

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Variation in heterochromatin content, as revealed by G- and C-banding, was studied in the sex chromosomes of the wood mouse, Apodemus sylvaticus. The sex-chromosome heterochromatin was also characterized by DAPI staining. Variation in sex chromatin was recorded in extremely large (giant) sex chromosomes in certain individuals and populations. In some individuals, the Y chromosome was the largest element of the complement. Different variants of both the X and Y chromosomes were found within a single population. The variation is therefore a type of population polymorphism and should not be used for taxonomic discrimination.

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We karyotyped and sequenced 1,140 base pairs of the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b of a specimen of Zarudny's rock shrew (Crocidura zarudnyi) from Baluchestan, southeastern Iran, to clarify its cytogenetic and molecular relationships with other Eurasian species of Crocidura. According to the karyotype (2N ¼ 40, FN ¼ 50), Zarudny's rock shrew belongs to the group of the lesser white-toothed shrew (C. suaveolens), which is different from other known crocidurine karyotypes, considering the combination of the diploid and fundamental number of chromosomes. Molecular results revealed that C. zarudnyi is included in a monophyletic clade with the C. suaveolens group, where it is a sister taxon to the others (mean Kimura 2-parameter distance ¼ 9.7%).