Abstract
We analysed Caucasian wood mice from Georgia (n = 60) and supplementary reference material of theApodemus/Sylvaemus species group to evaluate the reliability of taxon identification. Traditional “expert knowledge” plus three different methodological approaches were employed and combined to perceive their discriminatory power for a reliable taxon assignment. Graphs of principal component scores derived from the analysis of 14 skull metrics displayed taxon membership of individuals. Individual multi--locus (L = 18) electrophoretic profiles were used to re-assess specimens to a specific genepool by an assignment test based on allele frequencies indicative of populational taxon samples of the respective sampling locations. Genotyped individuals were re-allocated to those taxa, for which they yielded the highest probability score. Genetic distances among the taxa were computed and clustered in a neighbour-joining tree. PCR-fragments of 1074bp amplified from the mitochondrial cytochromeb gene were cut with 2 six- and 4 four-cutter restriction enzymes, and resulting RFLP patterns were analysed phenetically to classify the specimens according to their molecular similarity. Partial cytochromeb sequences were used to construct a phylogenetic tree by computing neighbour-joining clusters from a matrix of percent nucleotide differences. The power of the combined classification approaches and their congruence is discussed. It is concluded that the joint application of traditional, morphometric and biochemical or genetic techniques for taxon allocation of specimens of wood mice encountered problems in species delimitation. The mtDNA topology obtained was not congruent with protein polymorphism that indicated differential historical and/or recent introgression and incomplete lineage sorting in substructured populations. Cytochromeb sequence DNA data analysed were not as adequate as expected to resolve phylogenetic relationships among Caucasian and European members of theApodemus-Sylvaemus complex. Altogether, morphometric, biochemical and sequence data sets did not support the hypothesis of the evolutionary independence of European and Caucasian lineages of wood mice. Nonetheless, extended combined morphological and genetic analyses are considered necessary prerequisites to an in-depth study of the evolutionary lineages of theApodemus/Sylvaemus group. More sequence data of a variety of genes (and plenty of nuclear markers) are needed to resolve the various levels of differentiation of the extant lineages.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Alf R., Hille A. and Kneitz G. 1997. Genetische Populationsstruktur von Gelbhalsmäusen,Apodemus flavicollis, in einer intensiv genutzten Agrarlandschaft im östlichen Westfalen. Abhandlungen aus dem Westfälischen Museum für Naturkunde Münster 59: 117–134.
Avise J. C. 1994. Molecular markers, natural history and evolution. Chapman and Hall, N.Y.: 1–586.
Bibb M. J., Van Etten R. A., Wright C. T., Walberg M. W. and Clayton D. A. 1991. Sequence and gene organization of mouse mitochondrial DNA. Cell 26: 167–180.
Bookstein F., Chernoff B., Elder R., Humphries J., Smith G. and Strauss R. 1985. Morphometrics in evolutionary biology. Academy of Natural Sciences Philadelphia, Special Publicaltion 15: 1–277.
Brown W. M., Prager E. M., Wang A. and Wilson A. C. 1982. Mitochondrial DNA sequences of primates: tempo and mode of evolution. Journal of Molecular Evolution 18: 225–239.
Chelomina G. N. 1998. Molecular phylogeny of wood and field mice of the genusApodemus(Muridae, Rodentia) based on the data on restriction analysis of total nuclear DNA. Russian Journal of Genetics 34: 1084–1089.
Chelomina G. N., Suzuki H., Tsuchiya K., Moriwaki K., Lyapunova E. A. and Vorontsov N. N. 1998. Sequencing of the mtDNA cytochromeb gene and reconstruction of the maternal relationships of the wood and field mice of the genusApodemus (Muridae, Rodentia). Russian Journal of Genetics 34: 529–539.
Dixon W. J. 1990. BMDP statistical software. University of California Press, Berkeley.
Felsenstein J. 1997. PHYLIP (Phylogeny Inference Package). University of Washington, Washington.
Filippucci M. G. 1992. Allozyme variation and divergence among European, Middle Eastern, and North African species of the genusApodemus (Rodentia, Muridae). Israel Journal of Zoology 38: 193–218.
Filippucci M. G., Storch G. and Macholan M. 1996. Taxonomy of the genusSylvaemus in western Anatolia — morphological and electrophoretic evidence (Mammalia: Rodentia: Muridae). Senckenbergiana Biologica 75: 1–14.
Gorman G. C., Wilson A. C. and Nakanishi M. 1971. A biochemical approach towards the study of reptilian phylogeny: evolution of serum albumin and lactic dehydrogenase. Systematic Zoology 20: 167–186.
Gustincich S., Manfioletti G., Del Sal C., Schneider C. and Carninci C. 1991. A fast method for high-quality genomic DNA extraction from whole human blood. BioTechniques 11: 298–302.
Hille A. and Meinig H. 1996. The subspecific status of European populations of the striped field mouseApodemus agrarius (Pallas, 1771) base on morphological and biochemical characters. Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 46: 203–231.
Irwin D. M., Kocher T. D. and Wilson A. C. 1991. Evolution of the cytochromeb gene of mammals. Journal of Molecular Evolution 32: 128–144.
Kocher T. D., Thomas W. K., Meyer A., Edwards S. V., Pääbo S., Villablanca F. X. and Wilson A. C. 1989. Dynamics of mitochondrial DNA evolution in mammals: amplification and sequencing with conserved primers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the USA 86: 6196–6200.
Kumar S., Tamura K. and Nei M. 1993. MEGA Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
Makova K. D., Nekrutenko A. and Baker R. J. 2000. Evolution of microsatellite alleles in four species of mice (genusApodemus). Journal of Molecular Evolution 51: 166–172.
Martin Y., Gerlach G., Schlötterer C. and Meyer A. 2000. Molecular phylogeny of European muroid rodents based on complete cytochromeb sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 16: 37–47.
Mezhzherin S. V. 1990. Allozyme variability and genetic divergence in wood mice of the subgenusSylvaemus (Ognev et Vorobiev). Russian Journal of Genetics 26: 677–684.
Mezhzherin S. V. 1997a. Biochemical systematics of the wood mouse,Sylvaemus sylvaticus (L., 1758) sensu lato (Rodentia, Muridae) from Eastern Europe and Asia. Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde 62: 303–311.
Mezhzherin S. V. 1997b. Genetic differentiation and phylogenetic relationsships among Palearctic mice (Rodentia, Muridae). Russian Journal of Genetics 33: 65–72.
Mezhzherin S. V. 1997c. Revision of mice genusApodemus (Rodentia, Muridae) of northern Eurasia. Vestnik Zoologii 31(4): 29–41.
Mezhzherin S. V. 1997d. Gradualism or punctualism: evidence on genetic differentiation of small mammals from the Holarctic Region. Russian Journal of Genetics 33: 424–428.
Mezhzherin S. V., Boyeskorov G. G. and Vorontosov N. N. 1993. Genetic relations of the European and Transcaucasian wood and field mice of the genusApodemus Kaup. Russian Journal of Genetics 28: 1468–1477.
Mezhzherin S. V. and Zykov A. E. 1991. Genetic divergence and allozyme variability of mice of the genusApodenus sensu lato (Muridae, Rodentia). Tsitologiya i Genetika 25(4): 51–59.
Michaux J. 1971. Muridae (Rodentia) Neogenes d’Europe sud-occidentale. Evolution et rapports avec les formes actuelles. Paleobiologie Continentale 2(1): 1–68, 12pls.
Michaux J. R., Filipucci M.-G., Libois R., Fons R. M. and Matagne F. 1996. Biogeography and taxonomy ofApodemus sylvaticus (the woodmouse) in the Tyrrhenian region: enzymatic variations and mitochondrial DNA restriction pattern analysis. Heredity 76: 267–277.
Michaux J., Libois R., Ramalhinho M. G. and Maurois C. 1998. On the genetic structure of the Iberian wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) populations. An analysis of mt-DNA restriction patterns. Euro-American Mammal Congress, Santiago de Compostela, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Abstracts: 135.
Mitchell-Jones A. J., Amori G., Bogdanowicz W., Krystufek B., Reijnders P. J. H., Spitzenberger F., Stubbe M., Thissen J. B. M., Vohralík V. and Zima J. (eds) 1999. The atlas of European mammals. T & AD Poyser, London: 1–484.
Morgilevskaya I. E. and Tskipurishvili D. G. 1989. The wood mouse in Georgia, a morphological study. Metsniereba Publishers, Tbilisi: 1–112. [In Russian]
Murphy R. W., Sites J. W., Buth D. G. and Haufler C. H. 1996. Proteins I: isozyme electrophoresis. [In: Molecular systematics. D. W. Hillis and C. Moritz, eds]. Sinauer, Sunderland, MA: 44–126.
Musser G. G., Brothers E. M., Carleton M. and Hutterer R. 1996. Taxonomy and distributional records of Oriental and EuropeanApodemus, with a review of theApodemus-Sylvaemus problem. Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 46: 143–190.
Musser G. G. and Carleton M. 1993. Family Muridae. [In: Mammal species of the World: A taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Wilson D. E. and Reeder D. M., eds]. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington: 501–755.
Nei M. 1987. Molecular evolutionary genetics. Columbia University Press, New York: 1–512.
Nei M. and Li C. C. 1979. Mathematical model for studying genetic variation in terms of restriction endonucleases. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 76: 5269–5273.
Niethammer J. 1969. Zur Frage der Introgression bei den WaldmäusenApodemus sylvaticus undA. flavicollis (Mammalia, Rodentia). Zeitschrift für Zoologische Systematik und Evolutionsforschung 7: 77–127.
Orlov V. N., Bulatova N. S., Nadjafova R. R. and Kozlovsky A. I. 1996. Evolutionary classification of European wood mice of the subgenusSylvaemus based on allozyme and chromosome data. Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 46: 191–202.
Page R. D. 1998. TREEVIEW: An application to display phylogenetic trees on personal computers. CABIOS 12: 357–358.
Palmeirim J. M. 1998. Analysis of skull measurements and measurers: Can we use data obtained by various observers? Journal of Mammalogy 79: 1021–1028.
Saitou N. and Nei M. 1987. The neighbor-joining method: a new method for reconstructing phylogenetic trees. Molecular Biology and Evolution 4: 406–425.
Sembrook J., Frisch E. F. and Maniatis T. 1989. Molecular cloning: labotatory manual. Second edition. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, Cold Spring Harbor, New York: 3 volumes (no running pagination).
Serizawa K., Suzuki H. and Tsuchiya K. 2000. A phylogenetic view on species radiation inApodemus inferred from variation of nuclear and mitochondrial genes. Biochemical Genetics 38: 27–40.
Sneath P. and Sokal R. 1973. Numerical taxonomy. Freeman & Co, San Francisco: 1–573.
Swofford D. L. and Selander R. B. 1981: BIOSYS-1: a FORTRAN program for the comprehensive analysis of electrophoretic data in population genetics and systematics. Journal of Heredity 72: 281–283.
Thompson J. D., Higgins H. G. and Gibson T. J. 1994. CLUSTAL-W: improving the sensitivity of progressive multiple sequence alignment through sequence weighting, positions-specific gap penalties and weight matrix choice. Nucleic Acids Research 22: 4673–4680.
Van de Peer Y. and De Wachter R. 1994. TREECON for Windows. A software package for the construction and drawing of evolutionary distance trees for the Microsoft Windows environment. CABIOS 10: 569–570.
Waser P. M. and Strobeck C. 1998. Genetic signatures of interpopulation dispersal. TREE 13: 43–44.
Zagorodnyuk I. V., Boyeskorov G. G. and Zykov A. Y. 1997. Variation and taxonomic status of the steppe forms of genusSylvaemus “sylvaticus” (falzfeini — fulvipectus — hermonensis — arianus). Vestnik Zoologii 31(5-6): 37–56.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hille, A., Tarkhnishvili, D., Meinig, H. et al. Morphometric, biochemical and molecular traits in Caucasian wood mice (podemus/Sylvaemus), with remarks on species divergence. Acta Theriol 47, 389–416 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03192465
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03192465