dc.contributor.author	Wan, Tao
dc.contributor.author	He, Kai
dc.contributor.author	Jiang, Xue-Long
dc.date.accessioned	2013-11-04T16:11:31Z
dc.date.available	2013-11-04T16:11:31Z
dc.date.issued	2013-10-25
dc.date.updated	2013-11-04T16:11:31Z
dc.description.abstract	Abstract Background The genus Uropsilus comprises a group of terrestrial, montane mammals endemic to the Hengduan and adjacent mountains. These animals are the most primitive living talpids. The taxonomy has been primarily based on cursory morphological comparisons and the evolutionary affinities are little known. To provide insight into the systematics of this group, we estimated the first multi-locus phylogeny and conducted species delimitation, including taxon sampling throughout their distribution range. Results We obtained two mitochondrial genes (~1, 985 bp) and eight nuclear genes (~4, 345 bp) from 56 specimens. Ten distinct evolutionary lineages were recovered from the three recognized species, eight of which were recognized as species/putative species. Five of these putative species were found to be masquerading as the gracile shrew mole. The divergence time estimation results indicated that climate change since the last Miocene and the uplift of the Himalayas may have resulted in the diversification and speciation of Uropsilus. Conclusions The cryptic diversity found in this study indicated that the number of species is strongly underestimated under the current taxonomy. Two synonyms of gracilis (atronates and nivatus) should be given full species status, and the taxonomic status of another three potential species should be evaluated using extensive taxon sampling, comprehensive morphological, and morphometric approaches. Consequently, the conservation status of Uropsilus spp. should also be re-evaluated, as most of the species/potential species have very limited distribution.
dc.description.version	Peer Reviewed
dc.identifier.citation	BMC Evolutionary Biology. 2013 Oct 25;13(1):232
dc.identifier.doi	http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2148-13-232
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1993/22249
dc.language.rfc3066	en
dc.rights	open access	en_US
dc.rights.holder	Tao Wan et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
dc.title	Multilocus phylogeny and cryptic diversity in Asian shrew-like moles (Uropsilus, Talpidae): implications for taxonomy and conservation
dc.type	Journal Article

Multilocus phylogeny and cryptic diversity in Asian shrew-like moles (Uropsilus, Talpidae): implications for taxonomy and conservation

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