Phylogenetic relationships within a group of Paleartic short tailed ground squirrels (Spermophi lus), recently defined as genus, are not sufficiently clear and need a critical revision. Interspecies hybridiza tion, found in Eurasian Spermophilus, can affect the results of reconstruction of molecular phylogeny. Alas han ground squirrel position on the phylogenetic tree needs clarification. We analyzed eight nucleotide sequences of cytb gene of S. alashanicus and 127 sequences of other Spermophilus species form GenBank. S. alashanicus and S. dauricus close phylogenetic relationship, and their affinity to ancestral forms of the group are revealed. Monophyly of Colobotis subgenus was confirmed. Paraphyly of eastern and western forms of S. relictus was shown.
The role of hybridization as one of the factors of speciation in mammals has been underestimated for a long time, but now there is a lot of data on its impact in mammalian evolution. Hybridization of species often occurs in their secondary contact zones, which is a natural model for testing factors that ensure species integrity. Studies of hybrid zones are increasingly revealing the essential role of ecological and behavioral features both in initiating crossbreeding and in maintaining interspecific barriers. We studied the hybridization of two species of marmots Marmota baibacina and M. sibirica in the zone of sympatry in Mongolian Altai Mountains. We used a bioacoustic approach to determine the localization of individuals of different species and their cohabitation sites. Genetic typing with two diploid nuclear markers and one marker each of paternal and maternal lines was used to identify hybrids. Habitat preferences of marmots were studied to understand the conditions for the formation of heterospecific pairs. We found a high proportion of hybrid individuals in boulder screes where conditions for the formation of heterospecific pairs probably exist. Our data indicate the viability and fertility of F1 hybrids and their descendants. We hypothesize that the environmental preferences and behavioral features of both species of marmots are important factors that both create conditions for hybridization and limit hybrid dispersal.
The complete mitochondrial genome of Daurian ground squirrel (
Spermophilus dauricus
) (Genbank NCBI KR534854) was tested by comparison with mtDNA markers isolated from
Sciurus vulgaris
mitochondrial genome and
S. dauricus
samples with reliable species diagnose. A high similarity between KR534854 and
S. vulgaris
was found but not with
S. dauricus
. It seems that the mitochondrion (KR534854) belongs not to
S. dauricus
but to one of the species of the genus
Sciurus
. Monophylies of Xerinae and Sciurinae were tested by using mtDNA control region. The monophyly of Xerinae is supported by mtDNA data provided the KR534854 sequence is excluded from an analysis.
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