Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline
Background: Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are among those species most susceptible to the rapidly changing arctic climate, and their survival is of global concern. Despite this, little is known about polar bear species history. Future conservation strategies would significantly benefit from an under...
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ftucl:oai:eprints.ucl.ac.uk.OAI2:1337344 2023-05-15T15:10:37+02:00 Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline Edwards, CJ Suchard, MA Lemey, P Welch, JJ Barnes, I Fulton, TL Barnett, R O'Connell, TC Coxon, P Monaghan, N Valdiosera, CE Lorenzen, ED Willerslev, E Baryshnikov, GF Rambaut, A Thomas, MG Bradley, DG Shapiro, B 2011-08-09 http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1337344/ unknown CELL PRESS CURR BIOL , 21 (15) 1251 - 1258. (2011) MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA VARIATION SOUTHERN BEAUFORT SEA LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM BROWN BEARS POPULATION-DYNAMICS URSUS-ARCTOS URSIDAE PHYLOGEOGRAPHY GENES TIME Article 2011 ftucl 2013-11-10T08:36:34Z Background: Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are among those species most susceptible to the rapidly changing arctic climate, and their survival is of global concern. Despite this, little is known about polar bear species history. Future conservation strategies would significantly benefit from an understanding of basic evolutionary information, such as the timing and conditions of their initial divergence from brown bears (U. arctos) or their response to previous environmental change.Results: We used a spatially explicit phylogeographic model to estimate the dynamics of 242 brown bear and polar bear matrilines sampled throughout the last 120,000 years and across their present and past geographic ranges. Our results show that the present distribution of these matrilines was shaped by a combination of regional stability and rapid, long-distance dispersal from ice-age refugia. In addition, hybridization between polar bears and brown bears may have occurred multiple times throughout the Late Pleistocene.Conclusions: The reconstructed matrilineal history of brown and polar bears has two striking features. First, it is punctuated by dramatic and discrete climate-driven dispersal events. Second, opportunistic mating between these two species as their ranges overlapped has left a strong genetic imprint. In particular, a likely genetic exchange with extinct Irish brown bears forms the origin of the modern polar bear matriline. This suggests that interspecific hybridization not only may be more common than previously considered but may be a mechanism by which species deal with marginal habitats during periods of environmental deterioration. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Beaufort Sea brown bear Ursus arctos Ursus maritimus University College London: UCL Discovery Arctic |
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Open Polar |
collection |
University College London: UCL Discovery |
op_collection_id |
ftucl |
language |
unknown |
topic |
MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA VARIATION SOUTHERN BEAUFORT SEA LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM BROWN BEARS POPULATION-DYNAMICS URSUS-ARCTOS URSIDAE PHYLOGEOGRAPHY GENES TIME |
spellingShingle |
MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA VARIATION SOUTHERN BEAUFORT SEA LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM BROWN BEARS POPULATION-DYNAMICS URSUS-ARCTOS URSIDAE PHYLOGEOGRAPHY GENES TIME Edwards, CJ Suchard, MA Lemey, P Welch, JJ Barnes, I Fulton, TL Barnett, R O'Connell, TC Coxon, P Monaghan, N Valdiosera, CE Lorenzen, ED Willerslev, E Baryshnikov, GF Rambaut, A Thomas, MG Bradley, DG Shapiro, B Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
topic_facet |
MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA VARIATION SOUTHERN BEAUFORT SEA LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM BROWN BEARS POPULATION-DYNAMICS URSUS-ARCTOS URSIDAE PHYLOGEOGRAPHY GENES TIME |
description |
Background: Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are among those species most susceptible to the rapidly changing arctic climate, and their survival is of global concern. Despite this, little is known about polar bear species history. Future conservation strategies would significantly benefit from an understanding of basic evolutionary information, such as the timing and conditions of their initial divergence from brown bears (U. arctos) or their response to previous environmental change.Results: We used a spatially explicit phylogeographic model to estimate the dynamics of 242 brown bear and polar bear matrilines sampled throughout the last 120,000 years and across their present and past geographic ranges. Our results show that the present distribution of these matrilines was shaped by a combination of regional stability and rapid, long-distance dispersal from ice-age refugia. In addition, hybridization between polar bears and brown bears may have occurred multiple times throughout the Late Pleistocene.Conclusions: The reconstructed matrilineal history of brown and polar bears has two striking features. First, it is punctuated by dramatic and discrete climate-driven dispersal events. Second, opportunistic mating between these two species as their ranges overlapped has left a strong genetic imprint. In particular, a likely genetic exchange with extinct Irish brown bears forms the origin of the modern polar bear matriline. This suggests that interspecific hybridization not only may be more common than previously considered but may be a mechanism by which species deal with marginal habitats during periods of environmental deterioration. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Edwards, CJ Suchard, MA Lemey, P Welch, JJ Barnes, I Fulton, TL Barnett, R O'Connell, TC Coxon, P Monaghan, N Valdiosera, CE Lorenzen, ED Willerslev, E Baryshnikov, GF Rambaut, A Thomas, MG Bradley, DG Shapiro, B |
author_facet |
Edwards, CJ Suchard, MA Lemey, P Welch, JJ Barnes, I Fulton, TL Barnett, R O'Connell, TC Coxon, P Monaghan, N Valdiosera, CE Lorenzen, ED Willerslev, E Baryshnikov, GF Rambaut, A Thomas, MG Bradley, DG Shapiro, B |
author_sort |
Edwards, CJ |
title |
Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
title_short |
Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
title_full |
Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
title_fullStr |
Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
title_full_unstemmed |
Ancient Hybridization and an Irish Origin for the Modern Polar Bear Matriline |
title_sort |
ancient hybridization and an irish origin for the modern polar bear matriline |
publisher |
CELL PRESS |
publishDate |
2011 |
url |
http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1337344/ |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Beaufort Sea brown bear Ursus arctos Ursus maritimus |
genre_facet |
Arctic Beaufort Sea brown bear Ursus arctos Ursus maritimus |
op_source |
CURR BIOL , 21 (15) 1251 - 1258. (2011) |
_version_ |
1766341616787783680 |