Genetic Identification of Two Mudskipper Species (Oxudercidae: <i>Periophthalmus</i>) from Kulon Progo, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

Mudskippers are commonly cryptic species, making identification based solely on morphological characteristics challenging. This study used the DNA barcoding method to identify mudskipper species based on the COI mitochondrial gene. The analysis revealed two distinct species, P. kalolo (20 samples) and P. argentilineatus (3 samples) with high GC contents ranging from 42.94-45.2%. The genetic divergence analysis of P. kalolo showed that they divided into two clades, while P. argentilineatus is divided into three clades with two of the clades (C and D) still conspecific groups, and those two clades with clade E exhibit a genetic distance greater than 3.5%, suggesting the presence of cryptic species. These findings provide valuable insights into the intraspecies genetic diversity of mudskippers in Indonesia, which could have essential implications for conservation efforts and highlight the potential of DNA barcoding as a powerful tool for the identification of cryptic species. Further research combining molecular and morphological identification could lead to a more comprehensive understanding of species identification and help address the challenges posed by cryptic species.

Phylogenetic and genetic variation of common mudskippers (Periophthalmus kalolo Lesson, 1831) from the southern coast of Java, Indonesia inferred from the COI mitochondrial gene

“…The samples were preserved in 99 % ethanol and kept at −20 °C for later analysis. To broaden our analysis, we incorporated an additional 38 previously documented COI sequences of common mudskippers from various locations on the south coast of Java, including Bogowonto Lagoon, 23 Baros Beach, 24 and Pasir Mendit Beach 25 ( Table 1 ). Therefore, the total population in this study consisted of five distinct populations ( Fig.…”

“…These mangroves thrive along the interior coastlines of Indonesia's large islands and estuaries, 22 providing a unique habitat for mudskippers. Previous DNA barcoding studies have explored mudskipper species in various mangrove and estuary regions of Indonesia, such as Bogowonto Lagoon, 23 Baros Beach, 24 Pasir Mendit Beach, 25 Tekolok Estuary, 26 and several sites in Java and Bali. 27 These studies mainly focused on the southern coast of Java, which features mangrove forests along its inner coastlines, bordering the Indian Ocean.…”

Cryptic diversity of mudskipper genus Boleophthalmus (Gobiiformes: Oxudercidae) from the north coast of East Java, Indonesia

“…Boleophthalmus is widely distributed in tropical and temperate intertidal environments within The Persian Gulf, The coast of Mozambique, Southern Japan in the north, Indo-Pacific, and Northern Australia in the south (Muhala et al 2023;Polgar et al 2013). Oxudercidae comprises many species that are difficult to distinguish from each other due to their morphological similarities (Febrianti et al 2023). In Indonesian waters, this genus is represented by two species, B. boddarti and B. pectinirostris ( Polgar et al 2013;Dahruddin et al 2016).…”