Intraspecific evolution of Canary Island Plecotine bats, based on mtDNA sequences

Aims Several bird-pollinated or ornithophilous flowers are present on the Macaronesian archipelagos, the Canary Islands and Madeira, but absent from nearby NW Africa and Europe. In Macaronesia, no specialist nectar-feeding birds are found, but several generalist passerine bird species visit flowers for nectar. Two hypotheses attempt to explain the origin and evolution of ornithophily in the Macaronesian flora. According to 'the island de novo hypothesis', bird-flowers evolved from mainland insect-pollinated ancestors after island colonization. Alternatively, ancestors of the ornithophilous Macaronesian plant species evolved bird-flowers before reaching the islands ('the relict hypothesis'). In this study we first compile information of Macaronesian bird-flower interactions from the literature and our own field observations. Secondly, we discuss the two hypotheses of origin of ornithophily in the light of evidence from recent molecular plant phylogenies, palaeontology, historical biogeography of the African avifauna and flora, and present-day ecological patterns. Location Madeira and Canary Islands.Results At least eleven endemic Macaronesian plant species from six genera have typical ornithophilous floral traits. These genera are: Canarina and Musschia (Campanulaceae), Isoplexis (Scrophulariaceae), Echium (Boraginaceae), Lotus (Fabaceae) and Lavatera (Malvaceae). These lineages have clear affinities to the Mediterranean region, except for Canarina whose closest relatives grow in East African mountains. Six generalist passerine bird species of Sylvia, Phylloscopus (Sylviidae), Serinus (Fringillidae) and Parus (Paridae) visit this flora for nectar.Main conclusion We suggest that the origin and evolution of ornithophilous traits in these plant species took place mostly in mainland areas prior to island colonization. In Canarina and Lavatera, it is well supported that ornithophily is a relict condition, which originated in mainland areas possibly in association with specialist nectar-feeding birds. For the remaining plant species except Echium wildpretii bird floral traits probably also are a relict condition. These species may be derived from ancestors, which were visited by specialist nectar-feeding birds during geological periods when the Mediterranean and the Ethiopian vegetation were intermingled in mainland Africa. Probably, these mainland ancestors went extinct due to severe climatic fluctuations, while their Macaronesian descendants survived in 'refuge' on the islands. Finally, the island de novo hypothesis may explain the evolution of a mixed bird/insect-pollination system in the neoendemic red-flowered Echium wildpretii.

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“…, 2000a,b; Helfgott et al. , 2000; Pestano et al. , 2003), may not have been present until geologically recently.…”

Section: Historical Biogeography Of African Flora and Avifaunamentioning

confidence: 99%

Bird–flower interactions in the Macaronesian islands

Valido¹,

Dupont

Olesen

2004

Journal of Biogeography

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“…Populations of mammals on nearby islands often have similar phylogeographical histories due to identical patterns of colonization or geomorphological factors (Trujillo et al. , 2002; Pestano et al. , 2003; Vogel et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic isolation of insular populations of the Maghrebian bat, Myotis punicus, in the Mediterranean Basin

Biollaz

Bruyndonckx

Beuneux

et al. 2010

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim We investigate the population genetic structure of the Maghrebian bat, Myotis punicus, between the mainland and islands to assess the island colonization pattern and current gene flow between nearby islands and within the mainland. Location North Africa and the Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Sardinia. Methods We sequenced part of the control region (HVII) of 79 bats across 11 colonies. The phylogeographical pattern was assessed by analysing molecular diversity indices, examining differentiation among populations and estimating divergence time. In addition, we genotyped 182 bats across 10 colonies at seven microsatellite loci. We used analysis of molecular variance and a Bayesian approach to infer nuclear population structure. Finally, we estimated sex‐specific dispersal between Corsica and Sardinia. Results Mitochondrial analyses indicated that colonies between Corsica, Sardinia and North Africa are highly differentiated. Within islands there was no difference between colonies, while at the continental level Moroccan and Tunisian populations were highly differentiated. Analyses with seven microsatellite loci showed a similar pattern. The sole difference was the lack of nuclear differentiation between populations in North Africa, suggesting a male‐biased dispersal over the continental area. The divergence time of Sardinian and Corsican populations was estimated to date back to the early and mid‐Pleistocene. Main conclusions Island colonization by the Maghrebian bats seems to have occurred in a stepping‐stone manner and certainly pre‐dated human colonization. Currently, open water seems to prevent exchange of bats between the two islands, despite their ability to fly and the narrowness of the strait of Bonifacio. Corsican and Sardinian populations are thus currently isolated from any continental gene pool and must therefore be considered as different evolutionarily significant units (ESU).

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“…The cyt-b sequence divergence between the single haplotype from the Canary Islands and the mainland lineages is relatively high (averaging 3.9 and 4.2% to Moroccan and the Iberian haplotypes respectively; Table 3) and corresponds to the value reported by Pestano et al (2003) for a Canarian population and one specimen from Iberia sequenced at the same gene. Pestano et al (2003), however, found two slightly divergent cyt-b haplotypes among seven barbastelles from Tenerife Island, while all our Canarian samples (including three from Tenerife and three from La Gomera) were identical.…”

Section: The Barbastelles Of the Canary Islandsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Pestano et al (2003), however, found two slightly divergent cyt-b haplotypes among seven barbastelles from Tenerife Island, while all our Canarian samples (including three from Tenerife and three from La Gomera) were identical. Our Canarian samples proved to be identical even when they where sequenced for the more rapidly evolving CR (Table 1).…”

Section: The Barbastelles Of the Canary Islandsmentioning

confidence: 98%