Publication Details |
| Category | Text Publication |
| Reference Category | Journals |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.palaeo.2025.113473 |
| Document | author version |
| Title (Primary) | Diversification and historical biogeography of the Himalayan toad (Duttaphrynus himalayanus) |
| Author | Hofmann, S.
; Rödder, D.; Schmidt, J.; Flecks, M.; Jablonski, D.; Dubois, A.; Ohler, A.; Baniya, C.B.; Vershinin, V.; Litvinchuk, S.N.; Dufresnes, C. |
| Source Titel | Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |
| Year | 2026 |
| Department | NSF |
| Volume | 683 |
| Page From | art. 113473 |
| Language | englisch |
| Topic | T5 Future Landscapes |
| Supplements | Supplement 1 |
| Keywords | Bufonidae; ddRAD-sequencing; Himalaya; Kali Gandaki; Thakkhola Basin |
| Abstract | The Himalaya harbors a unique faunal diversity shaped by major geological events and the resulting paleoenvironmental changes. Retracing the evolution of Himalayan species thus offers a window to understand how mountain formation and climatic shifts influenced their diversification. Using genomic analyses and paleoclimatic species distribution modeling, we reconstructed the evolutionary history of the Himalayan toad (Duttaphrynus himalayanus), a montane amphibian widely distributed across the Himalayan range. Our analyses reveal two major phylogeographic lineages in D. himalayanus—east and west of the Thakkhola basin (upper Kali Gandaki River)—that diverged during the Late Pliocene (∼3.2 Mya) and seemingly show traces of recent gene flow. Patterns of divergence in the eastern lineage suggests additional phylogeographic structure between Nepalese and Bhutan ranges in the central Himalaya. The two lineages show differences in climatic space (especially precipitation), but not necessarily ecological divergence, suggesting that topographic barriers are a primary factor of differentiation. Our results suggest that D. himalayanus is a relatively young montane lineage, compared to other Himalayan amphibians, that diversified within the uplifted Himalaya rather than originating from paleo-Tibetan or Indochinese ancestors. The resulting hidden diversity seems primarily shaped by topographic barriers, notably the Kali Gandaki, despite episodic connectivity that was possibly facilitated by paleolake corridors formed during the Late Quaternary. These findings imply that taxonomic revisions in D. himalayanus are required, and call to further similar studies in other Himalayan herpetofauna to identify common drivers of biogeographic diversification across these mountain environments. |
| Persistent UFZ Identifier | https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=31704 |
| Hofmann, S., Rödder, D., Schmidt, J., Flecks, M., Jablonski, D., Dubois, A., Ohler, A., Baniya, C.B., Vershinin, V., Litvinchuk, S.N., Dufresnes, C. (2026): Diversification and historical biogeography of the Himalayan toad (Duttaphrynus himalayanus) Paleogeogr. Paleoclimatol. Paleoecol. 683 , art. 113473 10.1016/j.palaeo.2025.113473 |
|