Amphibious mudskipper populations are genetically connected along coastlines, but differentiated across water

Abstract

Aim: Specialized life histories can restrict the way that organisms move through the landscape. Some fishes, such as mudskippers in the family Gobiidae, are obligately amphibious and require a terrestrial phase in which adults build burrows and lay eggs in mudflats. To evaluate whether this restricted, out-of-water phase might influence population structure in one such mudskipper, we tested whether populations separated by water are more differentiated than those connected along a coastline.Location: South and East China Seas.

Environmental DNA phylogeography: Successful reconstruction of phylogeographic patterns of multiple fish species from cups of water

“…This requirement is one of the major barriers to phylogeographic studies. For example, when targeting mobile aquatic species, sampling sometimes takes years or decades to complete (Corush et al, 2022; Miyake et al, 2021; Nakagawa et al, 2016; Ruzzante et al, 2008). Additionally, capture surveys may be limited by safety considerations, laws and/or the potential invasiveness of tissue collection, which may raise various ethical considerations (Dugal et al, 2022; Tsuji, Miya, et al, 2020).…”

A chromosome-level genome assembly of the Walking goby (Scartelaos histophorus)

“…Modified musculature and skeletal structures such as well-developed pectoral fins provide support for crawling or jumping on mudflats to feed and escape predation (Pace and Gibb, 2009;Wang et al, 2013;You et al, 2018). This terrestrial life history is also important in biogeographical patterns of these fishes (Corush et al, 2022). Together, these adaptive strategies make mudskippers ideal for studying evolutionary transitions between land and water.…”

Environmental DNA phylogeography: successful reconstruction of phylogeographic patterns of multiple fish species from a cup of water

“…This requirement is one of the major barriers to phylogeographic studies. For example, when targeting mobile aquatic species, sampling sometimes takes years or decades to complete (Corush et al, 2022; Miyake et al, 2021; Nakagawa et al, 2016; Ruzzante et al, 2008). Additionally, capture surveys may be limited by safety considerations, laws and/or the potential invasiveness of tissue collection, which may raise various ethical considerations (Dugal et al, 2022; Tsuji et al, 2020b).…”