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Taxonomic relationships among Phenacomys voles as inferred by cytochrome b

M.R. Bellinger·S. M. Haig·E.D. Forsman·T.D. Mullins
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Abstract

Taxonomic relationships among red tree voles (Phenacomys longicaudus longicaudus, P. l. silvicola), the Sonoma tree vole (P. pomo), the white-footed vole (P. albipes), and the heather vole (P. intermedius) were examined using 664 base pairs of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Results indicate specific differences among red tree voles, Sonoma tree voles, white-footed voles, and heather voles, but no clear difference between the 2 Oregon subspecies of red tree voles (P. l. longicaudus and P. l. silvicola). Our data further indicated a close relationship between tree voles and albipes, validating inclusion of albipes in the subgenus Arborimus. These 3 congeners shared a closer relationship to P. intermedius than to other arvicolids. A moderate association between porno and albipes was indicated by maximum parsimony and neighbor-joining phylogenetic analyses. Molecular clock estimates suggest a Pleistocene radiation of the Arborimus clade, which is concordant with pulses of diversification observed in other murid rodents. The generic rank of Arborimus is subject to interpretation of data.

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M.R. Bellinger, S. M. Haig, E.D. Forsman, T.D. Mullins. 2005. Taxonomic relationships among Phenacomys voles as inferred by cytochrome b. https://doi.org/10.1644/1545-1542(2005)086%3C0201%3Atrapva%3E2.0.co%3B2

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