Miniopterus schreibersii

Šrámek, Jan, Gvoždík, Václav & Benda, Petr, 2013, Hidden diversity in bent-winged bats (Chiroptera: Miniopteridae) of the Western Palaearctic and adjacent regions: implications for taxonomy, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 167 (1), pp. 165-190 : 184

MINIOPTERUS SCHREIBERSII

Observed genetic variation in M. schreibersii s.str. also brings new insights into the species’ phylogeography. Furman et al. (2010a) suggested that shallow genetic differentiation between the western and eastern European colonies, and the relatively high genetic diversity observed in the eastern colonies, may indicate a re-colonisation of Europe from a single glacial refugium located in north-western Anatolia. Alternatively, Bilgin et al. (2008) localised such a possible refugium in Turkish Thrace, while Pereira et al. (2009) suggested either southern Iberia or North Africa. Furman et al. (2010a) further speculated on the existence of another glacial refugium in Italy. Our results, however, do not support such a hypothesis as a widely distributed haplotype was detected in southern Italy (Sicily; WM sublineage). To confirm such a hypothesis, an in-depth analysis of both Italian and surrounding populations is needed. Moreover, according to the available evidence, M. schreibersii fossils are absent in Pleistocene-Holocene transition cavedeposits in Italy ( Tata & Kotsakis, 2005). Taking all the intraspecific genetic data available (Bilgin et al., 2008; Pereira et al., 2009; Furman et al., 2010a; this study) into consideration, it would appear that, in addition to the apparent existence of a refugium in the Atlas Mts. of Morocco (see above) dating from the Middle Pleistocene (cf. molecular clock by Furman et al., 2010b), the presence of three or four additional glacial refugia can also be detected within the M lineage. Based on the genetic structure observed in this study (e.g. Fig. 3 ), we hypothesise, in accordance with Furman et al. (2010a), that the main refugium of the WM sublineage was in the east in the Black Sea region. However, as the Spanish and coastal Moroccan samples form a distinct clade within the WM sublineage, we cannot exclude the possibility of a further, western refugium in south-western Europe or lowland North Africa (cf. Pereira et al., 2009). Two distinct haplotype clusters observed within the EM sublineage, comprising southern Turkish and Levantine samples (including Cyprus), appear to correspond with the locations of glacial refugia in southern Turkey and the Levant (western Syria, Lebanon). The haplotypes of the Cypriot population do not form a monophyletic lineage, which suggests that colonisation of Cyprus from the adjacent mainland probably occurred recently and through repeated episodes (as also suggested for some other Cypriot bats; see Benda et al., 2007). Considering the supposed migratory nature of M. schreibersii (cf. Rodrigues & Palmeirim, 2008; Pereira et al., 2009), and the fact that geographic barriers do not appear to have a substantial effect on the evolutionary history of the species (Dobson, 1998; Appleton et al., 2004; Ibáñez et al., 2006; Bilgin et al., 2008; García-Mudarra et al., 2009; Furman et al., 2010c), one could also speculate on the existence of additional Miniopterus refugia. It would appear, therefore, that the genetic structure of M. schreibersii is a result of complex ecological-evolutionary causalities that may be diverse in different regions of the Western Palaearctic.

Figures

Figure 3. Graphic illustration of relationships between ND2 haplotypes of M. schreibersii s.str. (green, light blue, purple) and M. pallidus (dark blue), as inferred through the maximum parsimony network approach. Size of circles corresponds to the number of samples within a particular haplotype (1, 2, 4 or 7 samples). Small dots between haplotypes indicate hypothetical haplotypes (or number of substitutions between them). Geographic abbreviations: MO – Morocco, Agadir (coast); MA – Morocco, Atlas Mts.; ES – Spain; SI – Sicily (Italy); SK – Slovakia; RO – Romania; BG – Bulgaria; CR – Crete (Greece); CY – Cyprus; NT – northern Turkey; ST – southern Turkey; GE – Georgia; AZ – Azerbaijan; LB – Lebanon; SY – Syria; JO – Jordan; IR – Iran. Colours correspond to those in Figures 1B and 2. Haplotype codes are identical to those listed in Table 1.