Biogeography pattern of the marine angiosperm Cymodocea nodosa in the eastern Mediterranean Sea related to the quaternary climatic changes

Type Article
Date 2022-05
Language English
Author(s) Konstantinidis Ioannis1, 2, Gkafas Georgios A.2, Papathanasiou Vasillis3, Orfanidis Sotiris3, Kupper Frithjof C.4, 5, Arnaud-Haond SophieORCID6, Exadactylos Athanasios2
Affiliation(s) 1 : Genomics Division, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Nord University, Bodø, Norway
2 : Department of Ichthyology and Aquatic Environment, School of Agricultural Sciences, University of Thessaly, Volos, Greece
3 : Fisheries Research Institute (HAO DEMETER), Kavala, Greece
4 : School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
5 : Department of Chemistry, Marine Biodiscovery Centre, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
6 : Ifremer, UMR MARBEC (Marine Biodiversity, Exploitation and Conservation), Sète Cedex, France
Source Ecology And Evolution (2045-7758) (Wiley), 2022-05 , Vol. 12 , N. 5 , P. e8911 (12p.)
DOI 10.1002/ece3.8911
WOS© Times Cited 6
Keyword(s) Cymodocea nodosa, Holocene, Mediterranean Sea, migration, Pleistocene, population structure, sea-level rise
Abstract

We investigated the population dynamics of a highly clonal marine angiosperm, Cymodocea nodosa, in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, to identify the historical dynamics, demography, and connectivity of the species in the area. Eighteen microsatellite loci were used in conjunction with coalescent methods to investigate the genetic structure and demographic history of C. nodosa meadows. Approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) modeling was used to examine the pattern of divergence over time in the context of environmental change over the course of the Quaternary period. ABC analysis revealed an initial split of the C. nodosa populations between the north-western, northern, and north-eastern Aegean Sea during the Pleistocene epoch, followed by a more recent divergence of the north-western population and the central-western part of the Aegean Sea. According to the results, the most parsimonious historical scenario is that of a pervasive genetic signature of the effects of the drop in sea level during the Pleistocene epoch. This scenario supports the isolation of the north-western, north, and north-eastern area, and the subsequent recolonization after post-glaciation sea level rise that may explain the north-western differentiation as well present-day detected dispersion of C. nodosa.

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Konstantinidis Ioannis, Gkafas Georgios A., Papathanasiou Vasillis, Orfanidis Sotiris, Kupper Frithjof C., Arnaud-Haond Sophie, Exadactylos Athanasios (2022). Biogeography pattern of the marine angiosperm Cymodocea nodosa in the eastern Mediterranean Sea related to the quaternary climatic changes. Ecology And Evolution, 12(5), e8911 (12p.). Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8911 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00774/88603/