A Genetic Record of Population Isolation in Pocket Gophers during Holocene Climatic Change
A long-standing question in Quaternary paleontology is whether climate-induced, population-level phenotypic change is a result of large-scale migration or evolution in isolation. To directly measure genetic variation through time, ancient DNA and morphologic variation was measured over 2,400 years i...
| Veröffentlicht in: | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - National Academy of Sciences. - 95(1998), 12, Seite 6893-6896 |
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| Weitere Verfasser: | , , |
| Format: | Online-Aufsatz |
| Sprache: | English |
| Veröffentlicht: |
1998
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| Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk: | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |
| Schlagworte: | Genetics Population genetics Phenotypic plasticity Body size Biological sciences Physical sciences Environmental studies Applied sciences Social sciences |
| Zusammenfassung: | A long-standing question in Quaternary paleontology is whether climate-induced, population-level phenotypic change is a result of large-scale migration or evolution in isolation. To directly measure genetic variation through time, ancient DNA and morphologic variation was measured over 2,400 years in a Holocene sequence of pocket gophers (Thomomys talpoides) from Lamar Cave, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. Ancient specimens and modern samples collected near Lamar Cave share mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences that are absent from adjacent localities, suggesting that the population was isolated for the entire period. In contrast, diastemal length, a morphologic character correlated with body size and nutritional level, changed predictably in response to climatic change. Our results demonstrate that small mammal populations can experience the long-term isolation assumed by many theoretical models of microevolutionary change. |
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| ISSN: | 10916490 |