TY - JOUR
T1 - Diverse responses of common vole (Microtus arvalis) populations to Late Glacial and Early Holocene climate changes – Evidence from ancient DNA
AU - Baca, Mateusz
AU - Popović, Danijela
AU - Baca, Katarzyna
AU - Lemanik, Anna
AU - Doan, Karolina
AU - Horáček, Ivan
AU - López-García, Juan Manuel
AU - Bañuls-Cardona, Sandra
AU - Pazonyi, Piroska
AU - Desclaux, Emmanuel
AU - Crégut-Bonnoure, Evelyne
AU - Berto, Claudio
AU - Lenardić, Jadranka Mauch
AU - Miękina, Barbara
AU - Murelaga, Xabier
AU - Cuenca-Bescós, Gloria
AU - Krajcarz, Magdalena
AU - Marković, Zoran
AU - Petculescu, Alexandru
AU - Wilczyński, Jarosław
AU - Knul, Monika Vlasta
AU - Stewart, John R.
AU - Nadachowski, Adam
PY - 2020/3/9
Y1 - 2020/3/9
N2 - The harsh climatic conditions during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) period have been considered the cause of local extinctions and major faunal reorganizations that took place at the end of the Pleistocene. Recent studies have shown, however, that in addition many of these ecological events were associated with abrupt climate changes during the so-called Late Glacial and the Pleistocene/Holocene transition. Here we used ancient DNA to investigate the impact of those changes on European populations of temperate vole species (Microtus arvalis). The genetic diversity of modern populations and the fossil record suggests that the species may have survived cold episodes, like LGM, not only in the traditional Mediterranean glacial refugia but also at higher latitudes in cryptic northern refugia located in Central France, the northern Alps as well as the Carpathians. However, the details of the post-glacial recolonization and the impact of the Late Glacial and Early Holocene climate changes on the evolutionary history of the common vole remains unclear. To address this issue, we analysed mtDNA cytochrome b sequences from more than one hundred common vole specimens from 36 paleontological and archaeological sites scattered across Europe. Our data suggest that populations from the European mid- and high latitudes suffered a local population extinction and contraction as a result of Late Glacial and Early Holocene climate and environmental changes. The recolonization of earlier abandoned areas took place in the Mid- to Late Holocene. In contrast, at low latitudes, in Northern Spain there was a continuity of common vole populations. This indicates different responses of common vole populations to climate and environmental changes across Europe and corroborates the hypothesis that abrupt changes, like those associated with Younger Dryas and the Pleistocene/Holocene transition, had a significant impact on populations at the mid- and high latitudes of Europe.
AB - The harsh climatic conditions during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) period have been considered the cause of local extinctions and major faunal reorganizations that took place at the end of the Pleistocene. Recent studies have shown, however, that in addition many of these ecological events were associated with abrupt climate changes during the so-called Late Glacial and the Pleistocene/Holocene transition. Here we used ancient DNA to investigate the impact of those changes on European populations of temperate vole species (Microtus arvalis). The genetic diversity of modern populations and the fossil record suggests that the species may have survived cold episodes, like LGM, not only in the traditional Mediterranean glacial refugia but also at higher latitudes in cryptic northern refugia located in Central France, the northern Alps as well as the Carpathians. However, the details of the post-glacial recolonization and the impact of the Late Glacial and Early Holocene climate changes on the evolutionary history of the common vole remains unclear. To address this issue, we analysed mtDNA cytochrome b sequences from more than one hundred common vole specimens from 36 paleontological and archaeological sites scattered across Europe. Our data suggest that populations from the European mid- and high latitudes suffered a local population extinction and contraction as a result of Late Glacial and Early Holocene climate and environmental changes. The recolonization of earlier abandoned areas took place in the Mid- to Late Holocene. In contrast, at low latitudes, in Northern Spain there was a continuity of common vole populations. This indicates different responses of common vole populations to climate and environmental changes across Europe and corroborates the hypothesis that abrupt changes, like those associated with Younger Dryas and the Pleistocene/Holocene transition, had a significant impact on populations at the mid- and high latitudes of Europe.
KW - Common vole
KW - mtDNA
KW - Post-glacial recolonization
KW - Ancient DNA
KW - Younger Dryas
KW - Holocene
KW - 2020
U2 - 10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106239
DO - 10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106239
M3 - Article
VL - 233
SP - 106239
JO - Quaternary Science Reviews
JF - Quaternary Science Reviews
SN - 0277-3791
ER -