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29 November 2019 Taxonomic status of the nominal forms assigned to Necromys lactens (Rodentia, Cricetidae) as revealed by molecular and morphometric evidence
J. Pablo Jayat, Pablo E. Ortiz, Guillermo D'Elía, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, Bruce D. Patterson
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

Necromys is a genus of sigmodontine rodent that inhabits grasslands and scrublands in South America. Eight extant species are recognized in the genus; one of these is Necromys lactens, which inhabits high-elevation grasslands in the Yungas from south-central Bolivia to northwestern Argentina. Morphological variation in N. lactens has been recognized by the description of three nominal forms. Geographically structured genetic diversity also has been observed, but a thorough revision of these nominal forms within an integrative framework has yet to be performed. We conducted a phylogeographic assessment based on an 801 base-pair fragment of the cytochrome-b gene that guided morphometric analyses (univariate and multivariate comparisons) of patterns of geographic variation in the species, and the distinction of its nominal forms. Haplotypes of N. lactens form a well-supported and geographically structured clade. Within it, there are two main clades; haplotypes from the northern range form a well-supported clade, sister and allopatric to a weakly supported southern clade, which includes variants collected at or near the type localities of three nominal forms. In turn, both main clades are composed by two allopatric subclades. Morphometric analyses indicated no differences in shape of the skull among the three nominal forms or between the recovered clades and subclades. Taking together all the available evidence, we consider N. lactens to be a monotypic species.

© 2019 American Society of Mammalogists, www.mammalogy.org
J. Pablo Jayat, Pablo E. Ortiz, Guillermo D'Elía, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, and Bruce D. Patterson "Taxonomic status of the nominal forms assigned to Necromys lactens (Rodentia, Cricetidae) as revealed by molecular and morphometric evidence," Journal of Mammalogy 101(1), 24-35, (29 November 2019). https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyz187
Received: 27 June 2019; Accepted: 27 October 2019; Published: 29 November 2019
KEYWORDS
Akodon orbus
Akodontini
Bolomys negrito
central Andes
Sigmodontinae
South America
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