engleski

Mitochondrial DNA sequences reveal cryptic diversity within stone crayfish (Austropotamobius torrentium)

A phylogeny of the stone crayfish (Austropotamobius torrentium Schrank, 1803) was constructed using DNA sequence data from the mitochondrial 16S and COI genes. Seventy-five individuals from our crayfish collection sampled between 1995 and 2007 from 38 localities were analyzed along with forty-five additional A. torrentium sequences obtained from GenBank. Fifty-one different haplotypes were determined for COI and twenty-five for 16S gene. Parsimony, Likelihood and Bayesian analyses were conducted on separate data partitions. Five main clades, indicating five different geographical groupes, are apparent in reconstruction using both mitochondrial markers on all three implemented criteria of phylogenetic reconstruction. Uncorrected pairwise divergences (p-distance) between these groupes ranged between 4.5% and 9.1% for COI and 1.7% and 3.6% for16S. According to both global COI and 16S molecular clock the Dinaric haplogroupes seem to be the oldest stone crayfish populations in this research. They inhabit relatively small geographic areas and there is reasonable concern that they might undergone prominent reductions in effective population sizes and should therefore be given the highest priority for conservation management purposes. These results provide strong evidence that A. torrentium comprise morphologically cryptic but molecularly distinct taxa thus indicating a possible species complex.

stone crayfish; phylogeny; species complex; conservation

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