RT Journal Article
T1 Phylogeography of a riparian earthworm shows environmental factors influence genetic structure
A1 De Sosa Carrasco, Irene
A1 Fernández Marchán, Daniel
A1 Novo Rodríguez, Marta
A1 Almodóvar Pérez, Ana María
A1 Díaz Cosín, Darío
AB AimThe study of cosmopolitan earthworms could be even more interesting than that of endemic species in revealing evolutionary processes. Previous research on the cosmopolitan wormEiseniella tetraedrahas indicated some phylogeographic structure among populations, but the factors responsible remain unresolved. We hypothesized that environmental factors and dispersal have shaped the distribution of the species' lineages.LocationSpain and Portugal; Iberian Peninsula.TaxonEiseniella tetraedra(Lumbricidae, Oligochaeta, Annelida).MethodsWe collected 739 specimens ofEiseniella tetraedrafrom 65 localities around the Iberian Peninsula between 2012 and 2016. We performed phylogenetic analysis (Bayesian Inference and maximum likelihood) using two mitochondrial (COI and 16S) and one nuclear marker (28S). Furthermore, we studied their genetic diversity and historic demography based on the COI gene. Correlations between genetic diversity and 22 environmental factors were tested.ResultsEiseniella tetraedrashowed high diversity in the Iberian Peninsula, with eight different lineages nested in two clades. We found lineages mostly restricted to the northern region, while others were distributed throughout the Iberian Peninsula. Habitat stability, that is, constant availability or lack of water, also correlated with genetic diversity. Thus, although no clear phylogeographic pattern was found, environmental factors (such as precipitation, temperature, and soil pH) and habitat stability influenced the distribution of genetic variability.Main ConclusionsEiseniella tetraedrais an earthworm with great genetic variability. We show that the ranges of species with high relative dispersal ability and ambiguous phylogeographic patterns may be better explained by influence of environmental conditions rather than specific geographic features. Adaptation to unstable conditions has been shown to confer more success on one of the two major genetic clades recovered, pointing to ecological plasticity as a key for evolutionary success.
PB Wiley
SN 0305-0270
YR 2022
FD 2022-10
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/114089
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/114089
LA eng
NO De Sosa I, Marchán DF, Novo M, Almodóvar A, Díaz Cosín DJ. Phylogeography of a riparian earthworm shows environmental factors influence genetic structure. Journal of Biogeography 2023;50:156–68. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14518.
NO Acknowledgements:IS was supported by a Predoctoral Fellowship grant from Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain. DF was supported by a Juan de la Cierva Formación grant from the Spanish Government (FJCI-2017-32895) and a MOPGA grant from the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with the Ministry for Higher Education and Research (mopga-postdoc-3--6111272103). MN was supported by a Ramón y Cajal Fellowship (RYC2018-024654-I) from MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and “ESF: Investing in your future.” This research was funded by project CGL2013-42908-P from the Spanish Government, by Grant PGC2018-094112-A-100 from MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, and by “ERDF: A way of making Europe.” No permits were needed for this work.
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
NO Ministère de l'Europe et des Affaires Étrangères, (France)
NO Ministère de l'Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche (France)
NO European Commission
NO Universidad Complutense de Madrid
DS Docta Complutense
RD 7 abr 2025