Molecular Ecology (2009) 18, 3885–3902 doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2009.04319.x
Parallel habitat-driven differences in the phylogeographical structure of two independent lineages of Mediterranean saline water beetles
P. ABELLA´ N,*† A. MILLA´ N‡ and I. RIBERA*† *Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologı´a Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Jose´ Gutie´rrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain, †Instituto de Biologı´a Evolutiva (UPF-CSIC), Passeig Maritim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain, ‡Departamento de Ecologı´a e Hidrologı´a, Universidad de Murcia, Campus de Espinardo, 30100, Murcia, Spain
Abstract It has been hypothesized that species living in small lentic water bodies, because of the short-term geological persistence of their habitat, should show higher dispersal ability, with increased gene flow among populations and a less pronounced phylogeographical structure. Conversely, lotic species, living in more geologically stable habitats, should show reduced dispersal and an increased phylogeographical structure at the same geographical scales. In this work we tested the influence of habitat type in two groups of aquatic Coleoptera (Nebrioporus ceresyi and Ochthebius notabilis groups, families Dytiscidae and Hydraenidae respectively), each of them with closely related species typical of lotic and lentic saline Western Mediterranean water bodies. We used mitochondrial cox1 sequence data of 453 specimens of 77 populations through the range of nine species to compare a lotic vs. a lentic lineage in each of the two groups. Despite the differences in biology (predators vs. detritivorous) and evolutionary history, in both lotic lineages there was a higher proportion of nucleotide diversity among than within groups of populations, and a faster rate of accumulation of haplotype diversity (as measured by rarefaction curves) than in the lentic lineages. Similarly, lotic lineages had a higher absolute phylogenetic diversity, more remarkable considering their smaller absolute geographical ranges. By comparing closely related species, we were able to show the effect of contrasting habitat preferences in two different groups, in agreement with predictions derived from habitat stability.
Keywords: aquatic Coleoptera, habitat constraints, habitat stability, nucleotide diversity, phylo- geographical structure Received 25 February 2009; revision received 1 July 2009; accepted 7 July 2009
these two types of water bodies. Most species inhabit- Introduction ing aquatic environments are specialized to one of The habitat determines the spatial matrix in which these habitat types, and these differences in habitat species persist, constraining many aspects of species’ preference occur at all phylogenetic levels, often ecology and affecting biogeography and population among sister species, or groups of closely related spe- structure (Southwood 1977, 1988; Korfiatis & Stamou cies (Illies 1978). Both habitat types differ in their 1999). In freshwater habitats, a particularly important long-term persistence: small lentic water bodies, typi- ecological difference is whether they are standing (len- cal of many macroinvertebrates, tend to fill with sedi- tic) or running (lotic), with a wide range of physical ment over a time period of decades or centuries, and biological characteristics associated to each of whereas rivers and streams persist over geologically defined periods, even if their exact location may Correspondence: Pedro Abella´n, Fax: +34 932309555; change or if they dry up seasonally (Hutchinson E-mail: [email protected] 1957).