Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i>
The geographic variability of the dorsal pattern (DP) of the Italian wall lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i>, across its native range was studied with the aim of understanding whether the distributions of this phenotypic trait were more shaped by allopatric differentiation rather than adapt...
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MDPI AG
2022-06-01
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| author | Francesco Gallozzi Paolo Colangelo Gabriele Senczuk Riccardo Castiglia |
| author_facet | Francesco Gallozzi Paolo Colangelo Gabriele Senczuk Riccardo Castiglia |
| author_sort | Francesco Gallozzi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The geographic variability of the dorsal pattern (DP) of the Italian wall lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i>, across its native range was studied with the aim of understanding whether the distributions of this phenotypic trait were more shaped by allopatric differentiation rather than adaptive processes. A total of 1298 georeferenced observations scattered across the Italian peninsula and the main islands (Sicily, Corsica and Sardinia) were obtained from citizen science databases and five DPs were characterized by different shapes of the dark pattern (“reticulated”, “campestris”, “reticulated/campestris” and “striped”) or by absence of it (“concolor”). Frequencies of different DP phenotypes differ between the two main mtDNA lineages settled in central-northern and in southern Italy, respectively. This pattern may be indicative of a role of long-term allopatric historical processes in determining the observed pattern. The analysis also identified a putative wide area of secondary contact, in central southern Italy, characterized by high diversity of the DP. Generalized Linear Models (GLMs), used to estimate a possible association between bioclimatic variables and the observed phenotypic variation, showed that each of the five DPs is correlated to different environmental factors and show a different distribution of areas with high probability of occurrence. However, for all but one of the DPs, the area with the greatest probability does not correspond exactly to the real distribution of the DP. Conversely, the “concolor” phenotype does not seem related to any particular mtDNA lineage and it shows a preference for areas with high temperature and low rainfall. This is in agreement with the expectation of low amount of melanin of the dorsal pattern that, in the study areas, is characterized by a light uniform coloration which could confer a better thermoregulation ability in high temperatures environments to avoid overheating. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:00:50Z |
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| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:00:50Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-91b1a993b8d84aa48ed799bcbcf0f8512023-11-30T23:04:16ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182022-06-0114751910.3390/d14070519Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i>Francesco Gallozzi0Paolo Colangelo1Gabriele Senczuk2Riccardo Castiglia3Dipartimento di Biologia e Biotecnologie “Charles Darwin”, Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, Via Borelli 50, 00188 Roma, ItalyNational Research Council, Research Institute on Terrestrial Ecosystems, Via Salaria km 29.300, 00015 Montelibretti, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences, University of Molise, 86100 Campobasso, ItalyDipartimento di Biologia e Biotecnologie “Charles Darwin”, Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, Via Borelli 50, 00188 Roma, ItalyThe geographic variability of the dorsal pattern (DP) of the Italian wall lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i>, across its native range was studied with the aim of understanding whether the distributions of this phenotypic trait were more shaped by allopatric differentiation rather than adaptive processes. A total of 1298 georeferenced observations scattered across the Italian peninsula and the main islands (Sicily, Corsica and Sardinia) were obtained from citizen science databases and five DPs were characterized by different shapes of the dark pattern (“reticulated”, “campestris”, “reticulated/campestris” and “striped”) or by absence of it (“concolor”). Frequencies of different DP phenotypes differ between the two main mtDNA lineages settled in central-northern and in southern Italy, respectively. This pattern may be indicative of a role of long-term allopatric historical processes in determining the observed pattern. The analysis also identified a putative wide area of secondary contact, in central southern Italy, characterized by high diversity of the DP. Generalized Linear Models (GLMs), used to estimate a possible association between bioclimatic variables and the observed phenotypic variation, showed that each of the five DPs is correlated to different environmental factors and show a different distribution of areas with high probability of occurrence. However, for all but one of the DPs, the area with the greatest probability does not correspond exactly to the real distribution of the DP. Conversely, the “concolor” phenotype does not seem related to any particular mtDNA lineage and it shows a preference for areas with high temperature and low rainfall. This is in agreement with the expectation of low amount of melanin of the dorsal pattern that, in the study areas, is characterized by a light uniform coloration which could confer a better thermoregulation ability in high temperatures environments to avoid overheating.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/14/7/519citizen sciencecolour patterngeographic diversityphylogeography |
| spellingShingle | Francesco Gallozzi Paolo Colangelo Gabriele Senczuk Riccardo Castiglia Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> Diversity citizen science colour pattern geographic diversity phylogeography |
| title | Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> |
| title_full | Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> |
| title_fullStr | Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> |
| title_short | Phylogeographic and Bioclimatic Determinants of the Dorsal Pattern Polymorphism in the Italian Wall Lizard, <i>Podarcis siculus</i> |
| title_sort | phylogeographic and bioclimatic determinants of the dorsal pattern polymorphism in the italian wall lizard i podarcis siculus i |
| topic | citizen science colour pattern geographic diversity phylogeography |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/14/7/519 |
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