Wide Distribution but Low Differentiation: Genetic Diversity of Globose Shore Crab Cyclograpsus integer (Brachyura: Varunidae) along the Western Atlantic Ocean

Author(s)

Tamburus, Ana Francisca ; Teles, Jeniffer Natalia ; Valezio, Beatriz Heloisa ; Mantelatto, Fernando Luis

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN; v. 246, n. 1, p. 10-pg., 2024-02-01.

Abstract

Decapod crustaceans with wide distributions have shown different patterns of population structure in certain species, which clarified processes related to population dynamics and intraspecific variation. The aim of the current study is to assess phylogeographic patterns of the intertidal crab Cyclograpsus integer H. Milne Edwards, 1837, as well as its wide distribution in the western Atlantic Ocean, from the US to Brazil. We hypothesize that the genetic structure of C. integer is influenced by the interaction of different geographic barriers. We analyzed partial sequences of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I deriving from specimens collected along the western Atlantic distribution of C. integer. The phylogenetic reconstruction, haplotype networks, demographic history, divergence time, and discrete phylogeography of C. integer do not confirm our hypothesis. The wide distribution can be explained by the potential of C. integer larvae to disperse through northern Brazilian and Brazilian currents, which helps maintain gene flow across natural barriers. In addition, C. integer population size has increased in the Atlantic Ocean over the past 0.01-0.10 million years, with emphasis on two large separate groups and on the north-to-south spatiotemporal diffusion of its populations. While there is some evidence of genetic differentiation between the tropical northwestern Atlantic and the tropical/warm-temperate southwestern Atlantic regions, the overall genetic structure is low. The Amazon-Orinoco Plume appears to have limited influence as a barrier, further emphasizing the species' capacity for larval dispersal and genetic homogenization across its range. These findings highlight the importance of oceanographic features in shaping genetic patterns of widely distributed marine organisms and underscore the value of C. integer as a model for studying genetic connectivity in marine ecosystems. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 10/50188-8 - Decapod crustaceans: multi-disciplinary characterization of the sea biodiversity of the State of São Paulo (taxonomy, spermiotaxonomy, molecular biology and population dynamics)
• Grantee: Fernando Luis Medina Mantelatto
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/13685-5 - Integrative analysis of the Brazilian fauna of decapod crustaceans: taxonomy, phylogenetic systematics, spermiotaxonomy, morphology of post-embryonic development, ecology and conservation
• Grantee: Fernando Luis Medina Mantelatto
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 21/08075-6 - Training of specialized human resources in the molecular taxonomy field: decapod crustaceans as a training model
• Grantee: Fernando Luis Medina Mantelatto
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 09/54931-0 - Improvement and management of biological specimen collections at the Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo
• Grantee: Carlos Alberto Garofalo
• Support Opportunities: Research Infrastructure Program - Biological specimen collections
• FAPESP's process: 22/11451-2 - EMU Collections Infrastructure: acquisition of equipment for generating 2D and 3D radiographic anatomical images from the scientific collections of the Department of Biology at FFCLRP, USP, Ribeirão Preto, for availability on the internet
• Grantee: Fernando Luis Medina Mantelatto
• Support Opportunities: Research Infrastructure Program - Collections