Reconstruction of the postglacial colonization of Sorex araneus into northern Scandinavia based on karyotype studies, and the subdivision of the Abisko race into three

A distinct chromosome race of the common shrew (Sorex araneus Linnaeus, 1758) within the Arctic Circle in European Russia

“…Shrew populations distributed by the northern shore of Kandalaksha Gulf in the whole area of the Kola Peninsula remain still not studied, whereas races from territories to the west and Europe -2 in Finland (Savukoski, Kuhmo) and 3 in Sweden and Norway (Abisko, Ammarnäs, Hattsjö). At the same time, the condition of 4 other arms -g, m, o, and r -is race specifi c. In a detailed consideration of material from northern Fennoscandia, Fredga (2007) describes how the Ammarnäs race always has g, m, o, and r unfused, the Abisko race often has o and r fused and in two races -Abisko and Hattsjö -the fused combination between g and m occurs. Two neighbouring Finnish races are characterised by alternative polymorphic arm combinations g/o -m/r.…”

“…In shrew karyotypes from northern Scandinavia and Finland, the metacentric ip is most frequent, thus characterising the races of the North Europe Karyotypic Group, or NEKG (Fredga, 1996b). Representatives of these two groups meet and hybridise in the central part of Sweden which suggested that the postglacial colonization routes of common shrew populations in western Scandinavia came in two directions -from the north and from the south (Fredga, 2007). In races of European Russia, only a few karyotypes have both WEKG markers gm and hi, and not infrequently there is the alternative presence of either gm or hi.…”

Karyotypic differentiation of populations of the common shrew Sorex araneus L. (Mammalia) in Belarus

“…According to the definition of a chromosome race as " … populations which share the same set of metacentrics and acrocentrics by descent" (Hausser et al 1994), the populations that differ from neighbouring population owing to the presence or absence of a Rb translocation and occupy a definite area may be regarded as separate chromosome races. For example, the populations in Sweden that differ from the Abisko race (g/m, h/n, i/p, k/q, and o/r) by acrocentric variant of the arms o and r were recognized as the Ammarnas and Hattsjo races (Fredga 2007), and the population in the Rügen Island that differs from the main land Danish race Jutland (gm, hi, kq, no) by acrocentric variant of arms n and o was recognized as the Rügen race (Brünner et al 2002). Thus, the populations in the Dnieper -Pripyat interfluve which lack 1-2 race-specific Rb metacentrics, may be regarded as new chromosome races.…”

A wide hybrid zone of chromosome races of the common shrew, Sorex araneus Linnaeus, 1758 (Mammalia), between the Dnieper and Berezina Rivers (Belarus)

“…Cytogenet., 2010 4(2) Comparative Cytogenetics glaciation (10,000 -15,000 years) Borisov et al, 2008Borisov et al, , 2009. From the other hand, in contact zones of "acrocentric" chromosome races and "metacentric" chromosome races, which were formed as a result of centric fusions, the penetration of metacentric chromosomes into "acrocentric" populations and vice versa is observed for dozens of kilometers (Searle, Wojcik, 1998;Jones, Searle, 2003;Zima et al, 2003;Fredga, 2007). Moreover, for many millennia after the latest glaciation some local differentiated populations sometimes arose in such wide transitional zones.…”

“…Moreover, for many millennia after the latest glaciation some local differentiated populations sometimes arose in such wide transitional zones. Such populations differ by chromosome rearrangements and can be classifi ed as different chromosome races (Fredga, 2007).…”