Genetic variation and taxonomic status of Dahl’s jird (Meriones dahli, rodentia, muridae)

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Abstract

Dahl’s jird, Meriones dahli, is a critically endangered species restricted to a small area in central Transcaucasia. The phylogenetic position of Dahl’s jird within the Midday jird species complex was assessed based on the DNA of museum material. Both mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences were employed. Dahl’s jird has been found to be a sister group close to M. penicilliger, which is distributed in Turan. This result suggests the existence of a late Middle Pleistocene dispersal corridor for psammophilic species that is known to have connected the Transcaucasian and Transcaspian regions.

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About the authors

O. G. Nanova

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Author for correspondence.
Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Zoological Museum

Russian Federation, Moscow, 125009

V. S. Lebedev

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Zoological Museum

Russian Federation, Moscow, 125009

E. N. Solovyeva

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Zoological Museum

Russian Federation, Moscow, 125009

A. A. Lisenkova

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Department of Vertebrate Zoology

Russian Federation, Moscow, 119234

V. Yu. Bogatyreva

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Zoological Museum

Russian Federation, Moscow, 125009

E. D. Zemlemerova

Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com
Russian Federation, Moscow, 119081

V. A. Matrosova

Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences

Email: nanovaolgag@gmail.com

Department of Structural and Functional Genomics

Russian Federation, Moscow, 119991

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Supplementary files

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2. Fig. 1. Map showing distribution of taxa belonging to Meriones meridianus species complex. Green – M. meridianus, orange – M. pennicilliger, blue – M. psammophilus, red – M. dahli, triangle – morphological data (Nanova, 2014), circle – previous genetic data, diamond – original genetic data. Hatched area – approximate range of species complex. Red frame shows a more detailed distribution map of M. dahli specimens.

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3. Fig. 2. Maximum likelihood tree reconstructing phylogenetic relationships among cytb haplotypes in the M. meridianus complex. For color codes, see Fig. 1.

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4. Fig. 3. Median-joining network reconstructions in PopART of relationships among nuclear gene alleles: a – short fragment of IRBP gene from museum specimens, b – longer fragment of IRBP gene using longer sequences of M. dahli specimens from Turkey (Bulut, Karacan, 2021), c – short fragment of BRCA1 gene. Circle size corresponds to the number of samples, color denotes the species (see scale and color reference in the legend). Number of streaks on branches marks mutational steps between nodes.

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5. Supplementary material
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