Publication Details |
| Category | Text Publication |
| Reference Category | Journals |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.ympev.2025.108502 |
Licence  |
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| Title (Primary) | Slippery slopes: Montane isolation and elevational shifts shape the evolution and diversity of Iberolacerta lizards |
| Author | Dufresnes, C.; Gippner, S.; Hofmann, S.
; Litvinchuk, S.; Žagar, A.; Jablonski, D.; Pottier, G.; Megía-Palma, R.; Sánchez-Montes, G.; Jiménez Robles, O.; Ayllón, E.; Crochet, P.-A.; Martínez-Solano, I. |
| Source Titel | Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |
| Year | 2026 |
| Department | NSF |
| Volume | 216 |
| Page From | art. 108502 |
| Language | englisch |
| Topic | T5 Future Landscapes |
| Supplements | Supplement 1 Supplement 2 |
| Keywords | Biogeography; Climate change Europe; Lacertidae; RAD-seq |
| Abstract | Understanding
the processes driving the diversity of mountain herpetofauna requires a
comprehensive examination of species diversification across
evolutionary scales. Here, we investigate the phylogeography of Iberolacerta,
a genus of eight lizard species mainly restricted to high elevations in
southwestern Europe. Using genomic data, we reconstructed a nuclear
phylogeny that aligns with mitochondrial evidence in supporting the
divergence of all currently recognized species. Notably, we detect
historical nuclear gene flow between I. cyreni and I. martinezricai in Central Spain, suggesting past range overlap, reminiscent of previously observed mitochondrial introgression between I. galani and I. monticola, and the lack of divergence between disjoint populations of I. monticola.
Bioclimatic projections accordingly depict broader historical ranges
during the last glacial maximum compared to interglacial and current
conditions. At the intraspecific level, genomic analyses of four
high-elevation species reveal that genetic structure is mainly shaped by
isolation-by-distance and, in I. cyreni, by separation among
mountain ranges, while heterozygosity generally decreases with
elevation. These findings are consistent with the impact of
glacial-interglacial cycles on the genetic diversity of montane taxa:
populations experience genetic isolation and altitudinal bottlenecks
during interglacial periods, but are reconnected and admix in lowland
areas during glacial periods. These processes are expected to leave
contrasting signatures between the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes, as
well as between slow- and fast-evolving molecular markers. From a
conservation perspective, our results highlight that the genetically
richest – and potentially most adaptive – populations occur at the
lowland edges of the species’ ranges, where they are also most
vulnerable to climate change. |
| Persistent UFZ Identifier | https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=31791 |
| Dufresnes, C., Gippner, S., Hofmann, S., Litvinchuk, S., Žagar, A., Jablonski, D., Pottier, G., Megía-Palma, R., Sánchez-Montes, G., Jiménez Robles, O., Ayllón, E., Crochet, P.-A., Martínez-Solano, I. (2026): Slippery slopes: Montane isolation and elevational shifts shape the evolution and diversity of Iberolacerta lizards Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 216 , art. 108502 10.1016/j.ympev.2025.108502 |
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