"Nested" cryptic diversity in a widespread marine ecosystem engineer: a challenge for detecting biological invasions

BMC Evolutionary Biology

Maxine P Piggott¹  Kathy Walls²  Sad Benhissoune³  Christopher D McQuaid⁴  Claire F McClusky⁵  Mike Page⁶  Georgina M Cooke⁷  Catherine RM Attard⁸  Marc Rius⁹  Peter R Teske^1,10  Craig A Styan^1,11  Sam C Banks^1,12  Claudio Fuentes-Grnewald^1,13 

[1] Centre for Invasion Biology, Zoology Department, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa;Centre for Ocean Studies, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia;Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, USA;Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa;Environmental and Marine Response, Biosecurity Response

[2]  Post-Border, MAF Biosecurity New Zealand, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Te Manatu Ahuwhenua, Ngaherehere, New Zealand;Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia;Institut de Cincies del Mar, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientficas (ICM-CSIC), Barcelona, Spain;Laboratoire des Substances Naturelles, Dpartement de Biologie, Facult des Sciences, Equipe dOcanographie Biologique, Agadir, Morocco;Molecular Ecology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia;Molecular Ecology Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia;Molecular Ecology and Systematics Group, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa;National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), Nelson, New Zealand;School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Warrnambool, Australia

关键词: Ecosystem Engineer;    Incomplete Lineage Sorting;    Chilean Population;    Adenine Nucleotide Transporter;    Combine Sequence Data;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2148-11-176

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

来源: BioMed Central

【 摘 要 】

Ecosystem engineers facilitate habitat formation and enhance biodiversity, but when they become invasive, they present a critical threat to native communities because they can drastically alter the receiving habitat. Management of such species thus needs to be a priority, but the poorly resolved taxonomy of many ecosystem engineers represents a major obstacle to correctly identifying them as being either native or introduced. We address this dilemma by studying the sea squirt Pyura stolonifera, an important ecosystem engineer that dominates coastal communities particularly in the southern hemisphere. Using DNA sequence data from four independently evolving loci, we aimed to determine levels of cryptic diversity, the invasive or native status of each regional population, and the most appropriate sampling design for identifying the geographic ranges of each evolutionary unit. Extensive sampling in Africa, Australasia and South America revealed the existence of "nested" levels of cryptic diversity, in which at least five distinct species can be further subdivided into smaller-scale genetic lineages. The ranges of several evolutionary units are limited by well-documented biogeographic disjunctions. Evidence for both cryptic native diversity and the existence of invasive populations allows us to considerably refine our view of the native versus introduced status of the evolutionary units within Pyura stolonifera in the different coastal communities they dominate. This study illustrates the degree of taxonomic complexity that can exist within widespread species for which there is little taxonomic expertise, and it highlights the challenges involved in distinguishing between indigenous and introduced populations. The fact that multiple genetic lineages can be native to a single geographic region indicates that it is imperative to obtain samples from as many different habitat types and biotic zones as possible when attempting to identify the source region of a putative invader. "Nested" cryptic diversity, and the difficulties in correctly identifying invasive species that arise from it, represent a major challenge for managing biodiversity.

【 授权许可】

CC BY