Radiation beyond the geographic barriers:phylogeography of Iranian semaphore gecko

The Persian Gulf is considered as a bridge that facilitated the migration of many species between Iran and Oman during the glaciation periods. Reptiles, including geckoes, are thought to have dispersed across the Persian Gulf when it was a dry basin during glacial periods. Pristurus rupestris is a member of Semaphore geckos that has awide distribution range. The species radiated beyond geographic barrier (Persian Gulf) to Oman and Iran. Recently, 14 candidate species of P. r. rupestris were defined from Hajar Mountains (Oman). In this study, the phylogenetic position of the Iranian P. rupestris was investigated and the hypothesis on its historical colonization from Oman to Iran and its associated southern islands was examined. Thus, 20 Iranian samples along with 120 individuals in Oman using two mtDNA genes (Cyt b and 12S) were examined. The molecular phylogeny analyses in the present study revealed that the individuals collected from Iran were well nested within the candidate species 3 and also, create a single population indicating high gene flow (Fst = 0.075). Additionally, our analyses revealed that the candidate species 3 has been recently expanded within Iran boundaries (around 17 Kya). The historical demographic analyses support the hypothesis that a mild increase in the effective population size has happened between 15000 – 20000 yr. Probably, during the last glacial period, when the Persian Gulf was almost dry, the species could have radiated from Oman to Iran beyond the Persian Gulf.

کلیدواژه ها:

the Persian Gulf ، Pristurus rupestris ، mtDNA ، Hajar Mountains ، Glaciation periods