Phylogenetic relationships amongst the snake-eyed lizards of the genus Ablepharus Fitzinger, 1823 (Sauria, Scincidae) in the Iranian Plateau based on mtDNA sequences

By

Karamiani, Rasoul
Rastegar-Pouyani, Nasrullah
Rastegar-Pouyani, Eskandar

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2021-9-15

Original Publication

Herpetozoa

Volume

34

Pages

183--194

Subjects

12S rRNA , 16S rRNA , Ablepharus , COI , mitochondrial sequences , systematics

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.34.e66338

 

Abstract

We recovered molecular phylogenetic relationships amongst species of the genusAblepharusin Iran and Iraq. Partial sequences of three mitochondrial genes (cytochrome C oxidase subunit I – COI, 12S rRNA and 16S rRNA) were analysed. In addition, phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic evaluation ofAblepharusspecies in Cyprus, India, Greece, Turkey and Syria were performed using partial sequences of the 16S rRNA gene. Phylogenetic trees and estimated genetic distances showed that theAblepharuspopulations of Iran and Iraq clustered into three distinct clades. One is found in northwest Iran (A. bivittatusin Ardabil, East and West Azerbaijan and Hamedan Provinces). The second clade, formed byA. chernovi, is found only in Uromia. The third and most heterogeneous clade is divided into two subclades, the first includes two lineages ofAblepharusin Khorasan Razavi and Semnan Provinces (A. pannonicus) and in eastern and south-eastern Iran (A. grayanus); the second subclade is distributed in the eastern part of Iraq and west and south-western Iran (Ablepharussp.). Our analyses indicated that splitting ofA. chernoviwithin the genus occurred in the early Miocene [about 22.5 million years ago (Mya)].Ablepharus bivittatusdiverged 15.2 Mya, in the middle Miocene.Ablepharus pannonicusdiverged in the late Miocene (8.4 Mya) andA. grayanusseparated in the late Miocene (6.7 Mya). The lineages of eastern Iraq and south-western Iran (Ablepharussp.) diverged also in the late Miocene (7.0 Mya).