Phylogeography and Ecological Niche Modeling of the Alashan Pit Viper (Gloydius cognatus; Reptilia, Viperidae) in Northwest China and Adjacent Areas
Xu R. Dujsebayeva T.N. Chen D. Mijidsuren B. Xu F. Guo X.
December 2023Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)
Animals
2023#13Issue 23
The joint impacts of historical geological events and Quaternary climatic oscillations in Northwest China on species evolution have been examined extensively in plant under a phylogeographic perspective. However, animal phylogeographic analyses in this region are still limited. The Alashan pit viper, Gloydius cognatus, occurs primarily in arid Northwest China and adjacent areas. Based on variation at two mtDNA genes (ND4 and Cytb) in 27 individuals representing 24 populations, the spatial genetic structure and demographic history of G. cognatus were examined across its geographic range. Phylogenetic analyses revealed two well-supported allopatric clades (each with two distinct subclades/lineages), distributed across the southern (Qaidam Basin, Lanzhou Basin, and Zoige Basin [S1]; Loess Plateau [S2]) and northern (Ily Basin [N1]; Junggar Basin and Mongolian Plateau [N2]) regions. AMOVA analysis demonstrated that over 76% of the observed genetic variation was related to these lineage splits, indicating substantial genetic differentiation among the four lineages. A strong pattern of isolation-by-distance across the sampling populations suggested that geographic distance principally shaped the genetic structure. The four lineages diverged by 0.9–2.2% for the concatenated data, which were estimated to have coalesced ~1.17 million years ago (Mya), suggesting that the expansions of the Badain Jaran, Tengger, and Mu Us deserts during the Xixiabangma glaciation likely interrupted gene flow and triggered the observed divergence in the southern and northern regions. Subsequently, the early Pleistocene integration of the Yellow River and associated deserts expansion promoted the differentiation of S1 and S2 lineages (~0.9 Mya). Both mitochondrial evidence and ecological niche modeling (ENM) reject the signature of demographic and range contractions during the LGM for G. cognatus. In addition, ENM predicts that the suitable habitat of G. cognatus will contract in the future. As such, the conservation and management of ESUs should be a priority. Our findings provide the first insights on the lineage diversification and population dynamics of the Alashan pit viper in relation to geological history and Pleistocene climatic oscillations in arid Northwest China.
ecological niche modeling , last glacial maximum , mitochondrial DNA , Northwest China , phylogeography , pit viper , Quaternary
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Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
Laboratory of Ornithology and Herpetology, Institute of Zoology CS MES RK, 93 al-Farabi Avenue, Almaty, 050060, Kazakhstan
Department of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, West China, Chengdu, 610041, China
Plant Protection Research Institute, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Ulaanbaatar, 210153, Mongolia
State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, 830011, China
Chengdu Institute of Biology
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Laboratory of Ornithology and Herpetology
Department of Pathogenic Biology
Plant Protection Research Institute
State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology
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