%0 Journal Article
%T Phylogeographic Diversity of the Lower Central American Cichlid Andinoacara coeruleopunctatus (Cichlidae)
%A S. Shawn McCafferty
%A Andrew Martin
%A Eldredge Bermingham
%J International Journal of Evolutionary Biology
%D 2012
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2012/780169
%X It is well appreciated that historical and ecological processes are important determinates of freshwater biogeographic assemblages. Phylogeography can potentially lend important insights into the relative contribution of historical processes in biogeography. However, the extent that phylogeography reflects historical patterns of drainage connection may depend in large part on the dispersal capability of the species. Here, we test the hypothesis that due to their relatively greater dispersal capabilities, the neotropical cichlid species Andinoacara coeruleopunctatus will display a phylogeographic pattern that differs from previously described biogeographic assemblages in this important region. Based on an analysis of 318 individuals using mtDNA ATPase 6/8 sequence and restriction fragment length polymorphism data, we found eight distinct clades that are closely associated with biogeographic patterns. The branching patterns among the clades and a Bayesian clock analysis suggest a relatively rapid colonization and diversification among drainages in the emergent Isthmus of Panama followed by the coalescing of some drainages due to historical connections. We also present evidence for extensive cross-cordillera sharing of clades in central Panama and the Canal region. Our results suggest that contemporary phylogeographic patterns and diversification in Lower Central American fishes reflect an interaction of historical drainage connections, dispersal, and demographic processes. 1. Introduction Species distribution patterns are determined in large part by a combination of ecological (e.g., competition, predation, and demography) and historical (e.g., vicariance and dispersal opportunities) processes. Though in the past there was a general tendency to emphasize the role of ecology in structuring communities, historical processes have received increasing attention of late [1¨C5]. This is particularly true for the freshwater fishes where dynamic patterns of habitat loss (vicariance) and movement across freshwater connections (dispersal) are key determinants of species distributions [4, 6]. In addition, there is increasing evidence that contemporary patterns in species distributions and phylogeography tend to reflect historical rather than contemporary drainage connections in many freshwater species [7¨C10]. It is widely accepted that phylogeographic patterns have the potential to yield important insights into the mechanisms driving biogeographic structure. In particular, a close correspondence between intraspecific phylogeographic patterns and biogeographic
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