Probing diversity in freshwater fishes from Mexico and Guatemala with DNA barcodes
The freshwater fish fauna of Mexico and Guatemala is exceptionally diverse with >600 species, many endemic. In this study, patterns of sequence divergence were analysed in representatives of this fauna using cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) DNA barcodes for 61 species in 36 genera. The average divergence among conspecific individuals was 0 45%, while congeneric taxa showed 5 1% divergence. Three species of Poblana, each occupying a different crater lake in the arid regions of Central Mexico, have had a controversial taxonomic history but are usually regarded as endemics to a single lake. They possess identical COI barcodes, suggesting a very recent history of isolation. Representatives of the Cichlidae, a complex and poorly understood family, were well discriminated by barcodes. Many species of Characidae seem to be young, with low divergence values (<2%), but nevertheless, clear barcode clusters were apparent in the Bramocharax-Astyanax complex. The symbranchid, Opisthernon aenigmaticum, has been regarded as a single species ranging from Guatemala to Mexico, but it includes two deeply divergent barcode lineages, one a possible new endemic species. Aside from these special cases, the results confirm that DNA barcodes will be highly effective in discriminating freshwater fishes from Central America and that a comprehensive analysis will provide new important insights for understanding diversity of this fauna.
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Texto biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Subjects: | Peces de agua dulce, Taxonomía, Artfrosur, |
| Online Access: | http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1095-8649.2008.02077.x/full |
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