Abstract
Phylogenetic analyses of the left domain of the mitochondrial DNA control-region sequence have been used to examine the relationships among species of the genus Merluccius (Rafinesque, 1810), and to compare these with hypotheses based on morphological, meristic and allozyme characters. Analysis of aligned sequences revealed that transition bias was much lower than in mammalian mtDNA, and that nucleotide composition of control-region sequences was biased toward A and T. We have roughly calibrated a molecular clock for the genus, based on the rise of the Isthmus of Panamá, which is believed to have created a barrier to dispersal between marine species of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Our mtDNA-based phylogeny was highly congruent with allozyme-based phylogenies, but poorly so with a previously described phylogeny based on morphology. Specifically, our phylogeny resolved two well-supported principal clades, one of American (west Atlantic and east Pacific) species and the other of Euro–African (east Atlantic) species. This suggests an evolutionary history during which the ancestral lineage of Merluccius was divided between two geographic regions, with subsequent dispersal and vicariant events resulting in the evolution and distribution of extant taxa. However, the relationships between some taxa within the American clade could not be resolved. We suggest that this is consistent with an hypothesis of a rapid origin and radiation of these taxa.
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Received: 12 December 1998 / Accepted: 15 October 1999
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Quinteiro, J., Vidal, R. & Rey-Méndez, M. Phylogeny and biogeographic history of hake (genus Merluccius), inferred from mitochondrial DNA control-region sequences. Marine Biology 136, 163–174 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s002270050019
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s002270050019