Published December 5, 2021 | Version v1
Other Open

Population genomic response to geographic gradients by widespread and endemic fishes of the Arabian Peninsula

  • 1. King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
  • 2. University Austral de Chile
  • 3. Oak Ridge National Laboratory
  • 4. University of Canterbury Ilam*
  • 5. Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology*
  • 6. James Cook University
  • 7. California Academy of Sciences
  • 8. University of Central Florida
  • 9. University of Queensland
  • 10. Curtin University
  • 11. University of Washington
  • 12. University of Windsor
  • 13. John G. Shedd Aquarium*

Description

Genetic structure within marine species may be driven by local adaptation to their environment, or alternatively by historical processes, such as geographic isolation. The gulfs and seas bordering the Arabian Peninsula offer an ideal setting to examine connectivity patterns in coral reef fishes with respect to environmental gradients and vicariance. The Red Sea is characterized by a unique marine fauna, historical periods of desiccation and isolation, as well as environmental gradients in salinity, temperature, and primary productivity that vary both by latitude and by season. The adjacent Arabian Sea is characterized by a sharper environmental gradient, ranging from extensive coral cover and warm temperatures in the southwest, to sparse coral cover, cooler temperatures, and seasonal upwelling in the northeast. Reef fish, however, are not confined to these seas, with some Red Sea fishes extending varying distances into the northern Arabian Sea, while their pelagic larvae are presumably capable of much greater dispersal. These species must therefore cope with a diversity of conditions that invoke the possibility of steep clines in natural selection. Here we test for genetic structure in two widespread reef fish species (a butterflyfish and surgeonfish) and eight range-restricted butterflyfishes across the Red Sea and Arabian Sea using genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We performed multiple matrix regression with randomization (MMRR) analyses on genetic distances for all species, as well as reconstructed scenarios for population sub-division in the species with signatures of isolation. We found that 1) widespread species displayed more genetic sub-division than regional endemics and 2) this genetic structure was not correlated with contemporary environmental parameters but instead may reflect historical events. We propose that the endemic species may be adapted to a diversity of local conditions, but the widespread species are instead subject to ecological filtering where different combinations of genotypes persist under divergent ecological regimes.

Notes

We provide an excel file for the SNP sample information associated with all indivduals.

Funding provided by: KAUST Office of Competitive Research Funds*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: CRG-1-2012-BER-002

Funding provided by: National Geographic Society
Crossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100006363
Award Number: 9024-11

Funding provided by: National Science Foundation
Crossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100000001
Award Number: OCE-1558852

Funding provided by: KAUST Office of Competitive Research Funds
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: CRG-1-2012-BER-002

Files

Appendix_S2__Pairwise_Fst_Tables__Dryad.zip

Files (4.1 kB)

Name Size Download all
md5:068cac2ddc08357b8f6fad2f1c3275b2
4.1 kB Preview Download

Additional details

Related works

Is cited by
10.1002/ece3.6199 (DOI)
Is derived from
10.5061/dryad.rn8pk0p68 (DOI)