The Phylogeography of Marstonia Lustrica: Understanding the Relationship Between Glaciation and the Evolution and Distribution of a Rare Snail

• Main Author: Coote, Thomas W
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst 2011
• Subjects: gastropod; glacier; Marstonia; phylogenetics; phylogeography; snail; Agricultural and Resource Economics; Canada; Kya; glacier*
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations/399; https://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1385&context=open_access_dissertations

Marstonia lustrica is a poorly understood aquatic snail, relatively rare throughout its range and listed in the State of Massachusetts as Endangered (MNHESP 2010, Hershler et. al 1987). It is the northern-most cold temperate species of its genus, with other members of the genus occurring along the southern edge of its range and in the southeastern United States (Thompson 1977). The current range of M. lustrica appears to follow the maximum extent of the Laurentide Glacier (20–25 kya), extending from Minnesota to western Massachusetts. Research regarding the distribution, ecology, and phylogeny of M. lustrica in the State of Massachusetts and eastern New York raised the possible role of glaciers and pro-glacial lakes in the establishment and distribution of the snail, leading to the hypothesis that its distribution and evolution may be dependent upon glacial processes. A full range survey was completed in 2007 and 2008, with populations identified in 20 water bodies from Minnesota to Massachusetts, and Ohio to Ontario, Canada. Fifty-seven specimens from the 20 populations were sequenced for two mtDNA markers (COI and NDI), developing both phylogenetic trees and haplotype networks. Here I present those trees and networks, and correlate the distribution of these populations and their representative haplotypes with both glacial events and contemporary watersheds, using AMOVAs and Mantel tests to examine several v phylogeographic models. In addition to the results for M. lustrica, the unexpected occurrence of several other species of Marstonia spp. found across the range of M. lustrica are presented, including M. pachyta, M. comalensis, and M. hershleri.