Hidden diversity in the Podarcis tauricus (Sauria, Lacertidae) species subgroup in the light of multilocus phylogeny and species delimitation

Cryptic diversity and molecular systematics of the AegeanOphiomorusskinks (Reptilia: Squamata), with the description of a new species

“…Parsimony network analyses not only split the two entities in separate networks for CO1 , a sign of ESU occurrence according to some authors (Fraser & Bernatchez, ), but also for one of the slower evolving nuclear markers ( PRLR ). MtDNA genetic distances are similar to or greater than those observed among species in other recent studies of reptiles (e.g., Psonis et al., ; Sagonas et al., ; Skourtanioti et al., ). There is no generally accepted threshold of DNA divergence that indicates distinct species.…”

“…MtDNA divergence reaches as high as 5.3% p ‐distances among the subclades, when the highest previously reported values within the Peloponnese were 0.6% for cytochrome b (Poulakakis et al., ). The structured genetic variation observed within the Peloponnese is not a unique pattern for the studied skink, as it has been demonstrated for other animals including reptiles, especially ones that have been present in the area for a long time (Kornilios, Thanou, Kapli, Parmakelis, & Chatzaki, ; Psonis et al., ; Sagonas et al., ; Thanou, Giokas, & Kornilios, ). The Peloponnesian topographic relief, the long and complicated geological history of the region and its role as a refugium are probably responsible for the partitioning and maintenance of the observed high levels of diversity (Thanou et al., and references therein).…”

A study in scarlet: incipient speciation, phenotypic differentiation and conservation implications of the Podarcis lizards of the western Pontine Islands, Italy

“…The latest study, based on mitochondrial and nuclear sequences, described a new diverging lineage for the western Pontine Islands (Ponza, Zannone, Palmarola and Gavi islands), whereas populations from the eastern Pontine (Ventotene and Santo Stefano islands) were found to be genetically indistinguishable from the mainland populations (Biaggini et al, 2009;Senczuk et al, 2018). The genetic distances found for the western Pontine with respect to the mainland lineages are comparable to those observed in other Podarcis species and even twice as much as, for example, between Podarcis waglerianus and its sister species, the endemic Aeolian wall lizard (Podarcis raffoneae) (Harris et al, 2005;Poulakakis et al, 2005;Lymberakis & Poulakakis, 2010, Psonis et al, 2017. The molecular clock was in line with the dating of the principal episodes of volcanic eruptions that led to the formation of the islands (Cadoux et al, 2005), suggesting an early Pliocene colonization of the palaeo-archipelago followed by a mid-Pleistocene make-up of the current genetic variation among the islands (Senczuk et al, 2018).…”

The role of island physiography in maintaining genetic diversity in the endemic Tyrrhenian wall lizard (Podarcis tiliguerta)

“…The high genetic diversity reported here, along with that observed in other phylogeographic studies, places the Tyrrhenian wall lizard among those species characterized by high genetic diversity regardless of its relatively small distribution (Ketmaier & Caccone, and references therein; Salvi et al ., ). Within Podarcis , such a high intraspecific differentiation is only comparable to some continental species such as P. siculus , P. muralis and P. tauricus (Salvi et al ., ; Psonis et al ., , ; Senczuk et al ., ). Although Corsica and Sardinia are geographically less complex than mainland Europe, most of the examined species showed complex responses to the Pleistocene climate oscillations.…”