Poecilia vivipara Bloch & Schneider, 1801 (Cyprinodontiformes, Poeciliidae), a guppy in an oceanic archipelago: from where did it come?

• Published in: ZooKeys Vol. 746; no. 746; pp. 91 - 104
• Main Authors: Berbel-Filho, Waldir Miron, Barros-Neto, Luciano Freitas, Dias, Ricardo Marques, Mendes, Liana Figueiredo, Figueiredo, Carlos Augusto Assumpção, Torres, Rodrigo Augusto, Lima, Sergio Maia Queiroz
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers 26.03.2018
• Subjects: Biogeography; Biological Invasions; Cytochrome oxidase I; Discovery and exploration; Dispersal; Evolution (Adaptation) and Conservation; Evolutionary biology; Geographical distribution; Haplotypes; Identification and classification; Mitochondria; Origin; Owls; Paleozoic; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Poecilia vivipara; Poeciliidae; Population studies; River basins; Rivers; South America; Zoology; Brazil; Mosquito larvae control; Natural dispersal; Fernando de Noronha arquipelago; Mitochondrial DNA; Human-mediated dispersal; Mosquitofish
• ISSN: 1313-2989; 1313-2970
• DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.746.20960

, a small euryhaline guppy is reported at the Maceió River micro-basin in the Fernando de Noronha oceanic archipelago, northeast Brazil. However, the origin (human-mediated or natural dispersal) of this insular population is still controversial. The present study investigates how this population is phylogenetically related to the surrounding continental populations using the cytochrome oxidase I mitochondrial gene from eleven river basins in South America. Our phylogenetic reconstruction showed a clear geographical distribution arrangement of lineages. The Fernando de Noronha haplotype fell within the 'north' clade, closely related to a shared haplotype between the Paraíba do Norte and Potengi basins; the geographically closest continental drainages. Our phylogenetic reconstruction also showed highly divergent lineages, suggesting that may represent a species complex along its wide distribution. Regarding to the insular population, may have been intentionally introduced to the archipelago for the purpose of mosquito larvae control during the occupation of a U.S. military base following World War II. However, given the euryhaline capacity of , a potential scenario of natural (passive or active) dispersal cannot be ruled out.