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Population Structure of the SW Atlantic Estuarine Crab Neohelice granulata Throughout Its Range: a Genetic and Morphometric Study

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Abstract

Phylogeographic patterns of the SW Atlantic estuarine crab Neohelice granulata were examined using mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I sequences and analyzed together with morphometric data. Specimens were sampled during a 4-year period (2001–2004) from 11 localities encompassing the full distributional range of this species along the SW Atlantic (22°57′ S to 42°25′ S). DNA sequences were obtained from 69 individuals belonging to seven localities, and morphometric variation in 12 continuous characters was analyzed for 646 crabs from ten localities. Strong genetic differentiation, consistent with a pattern of isolation-by-distance, was detected among all localities indicating that gene flow occurs mainly between neighboring populations. Analyses of molecular variance showed genetic subdivision between the southern (Argentina) and the northern (Brazil) sites, suggesting restricted gene flow at a regional scale. The genetic structure of this species could be divided into two distinct groups due to a limited gene flow between southern and northern regions as a consequence of larval dispersal patterns. Coastal currents in the vicinity of the Rio de la Plata likely act as a barrier to dispersal within the species range. Moreover, genetic data indicate that populations of N. granulata might have undergone a northward demographic expansion since the late Pleistocene. The morphometric analysis showed no geographical pattern of morphological differentiation, although there were differences among sampling sites.

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Acknowledgments

Financial support for this work came from Fundación Antorchas, Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (ANPCyT), and Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET). The Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación (ANII) provided financial support to AD and EPL. We are grateful to Dr. Raul Reta, Dr. Marcelo Zarate, and Claudia Bas for helpful comments. RBI wishes to thank Ivanna Tomasco and Carolina Abud for their great help during lab training in molecular techniques. We also acknowledge two reviewers for constructive comments on an earlier version of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratorio Zoología Invertebrados, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Casilla de Correo 1245, 7600, Mar del Plata, Argentina

    Romina B. Ituarte, Tomás A. Luppi & Eduardo D. Spivak

  2. Departamento de Ecología y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, 11400, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Alejandro D’Anatro & Enrique P. Lessa

  3. Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Casilla de Correo 573, 7600, Mar del Plata, Argentina

    Pablo D. Ribeiro & Oscar O. Iribarne

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  1. Romina B. Ituarte
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  2. Alejandro D’Anatro
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  3. Tomás A. Luppi
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Correspondence to Romina B. Ituarte.

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Ituarte, R.B., D’Anatro, A., Luppi, T.A. et al. Population Structure of the SW Atlantic Estuarine Crab Neohelice granulata Throughout Its Range: a Genetic and Morphometric Study. Estuaries and Coasts 35, 1249–1260 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-012-9516-9

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