Kun-Chin Hung, Ching-Yu Liou, Chih-Chung Wen, Hui-Chen Lin
{"title":"Genetic Structure of the Endemic Fiddler Crab <i>Uca</i> (<i>Xeruca</i>) <i>formosensis</i> on the West Coast of Taiwan.","authors":"Kun-Chin Hung, Ching-Yu Liou, Chih-Chung Wen, Hui-Chen Lin","doi":"10.6620/ZS.2023.62-24","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Xeruca formosensis</i> is the only endemic species of fiddler crab on the west coast of Taiwan. However, its natural habitats and populations have been compromised by excessive anthropogenic activities and improper land use over the past four decades. In light of these changes, we sought to evaluate the genetic diversity and gene flow of the species by examining the genetic variation of <i>X. formosensis</i> at different sampling locations. To this end, we performed molecular analyses of three endonuclease-amplified fragment length polymorphisms (TE-AFLP) and the cytochrome oxidase subunit I (<i>COI</i>) marker from leg muscle samples. We found that the genetic variation within sampling locations was higher than that among sampling locations, and the expected heterozygosity of genetic diversity (H<sub>j</sub>) was 0.152 for TE-AFLP data. Meanwhile, the <i>COI</i> marker showed high haplotype diversity (<i>h</i> = 0.976 ± 0.008) and a low genetic differentiation level (<i>F</i><sub>ST</sub> = 0.021) in <i>X. formosensis</i> populations. Importantly, the genetic connectivity of <i>X. formosensis</i> may be influenced by larval-stage crabs drifting between coastal and marine habitats. As such, crab gene flow is promoted among populations by larval exchange via nearshore currents. Although <i>X. formosensis</i> has high gene flow, the species could undergo an extinction crisis if the population sizes continue to decline, as with most endangered species. In order to maintain the natural habitats and population size of <i>X. formosensis</i>, long-term monitoring and investigation will be necessary.</p>","PeriodicalId":49331,"journal":{"name":"Zoological Studies","volume":"62 ","pages":"e24"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10475467/pdf/zoolstud-62-024.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Zoological Studies","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.6620/ZS.2023.62-24","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"ZOOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Xeruca formosensis is the only endemic species of fiddler crab on the west coast of Taiwan. However, its natural habitats and populations have been compromised by excessive anthropogenic activities and improper land use over the past four decades. In light of these changes, we sought to evaluate the genetic diversity and gene flow of the species by examining the genetic variation of X. formosensis at different sampling locations. To this end, we performed molecular analyses of three endonuclease-amplified fragment length polymorphisms (TE-AFLP) and the cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) marker from leg muscle samples. We found that the genetic variation within sampling locations was higher than that among sampling locations, and the expected heterozygosity of genetic diversity (Hj) was 0.152 for TE-AFLP data. Meanwhile, the COI marker showed high haplotype diversity (h = 0.976 ± 0.008) and a low genetic differentiation level (FST = 0.021) in X. formosensis populations. Importantly, the genetic connectivity of X. formosensis may be influenced by larval-stage crabs drifting between coastal and marine habitats. As such, crab gene flow is promoted among populations by larval exchange via nearshore currents. Although X. formosensis has high gene flow, the species could undergo an extinction crisis if the population sizes continue to decline, as with most endangered species. In order to maintain the natural habitats and population size of X. formosensis, long-term monitoring and investigation will be necessary.
期刊介绍:
Zoological Studies publishes original research papers in five major fields: Animal Behavior, Comparative Physiology, Evolution, Ecology, and Systematics and Biogeography. Manuscripts are welcome from around the world and must be written in English. When the manuscript concerns the use of animals or specimens in research, a statement must be included to the effect that the author(s) has adhered to the legal requirements of the country in which the work was carried out or to any institutional guidelines.