TitleGenetics, morphology and ecology reveal a cryptic pika lineage in the Sikkim Himalaya.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2017
AuthorsDahal N, Lissovsky AA, Lin Z, Solari K, Hadly EA, Zhan X, Ramakrishnan U
JournalMol Phylogenet Evol
Volume106
Pagination55-60
Date Published09/2016
ISSN1095-9513
Abstract

Asian pika species are morphologically ∼similar and have overlapping ranges. This leads to uncertainty and species misidentification in the field. Phylogenetic analyses of such misidentified samples leads to taxonomic ambiguity. The ecology of many pika species remains understudied, particularly in the Himalaya, where sympatric species could be separated by elevation and/or substrate. We sampled, measured, and acquired genetic data from pikas in the Sikkim Himalaya. Our analyses revealed a cryptic lineage, Ochotona sikimaria, previously reported as a subspecies of O. thibetana. The results support the elevation of this lineage to the species level, as it is genetically divergent from O. thibetana, as well as sister species, O. cansus (endemic to central China) and O. curzoniae (endemic to the Tibetan plateau). The Sikkim lineage diverged from its sister species' about 1.7-0.8 myr ago, coincident with uplift events in the Himalaya. Our results add to the recent spate of cryptic diversity identified from the eastern Himalaya and highlight the need for further study within the Ochotonidae.

DOI10.1016/j.ympev.2016.09.015
Alternate JournalMol. Phylogenet. Evol.
PubMed ID27640954