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A tale of two seas: contrasting patterns of population structure in the small-spotted catshark across Europe
AUTHORS: Gubili, C., Sims, D.W., Veríssimo, A., Domenici, P., Ellis, J., Grigoriou, P., Johnson, A.F., McHugh, M., Neat, F., Satta, A. and Scarcella, G.
DATE: October 2014
Researchers found that the genetic structure of the small spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula) in the Mediterranean demonstrated significant differences among each other, while DNA of individuals from the Atlantic shelf were not distinct.
Researchers investigated the genetic structure of the small spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula) that resides across European seas and found that Mediterranean samples demonstrated significant genetic differences among each other. Contrastingly, DNA of samples from the Atlantic shelf were not distinct. These results implied that the Mediterranean populations had a stable structure during the Pleisocene, while the Atlantic populations experienced major habitat disruptions during the same period. The study also presented patterns of connectivity based on the stability of past habitat that factors in the local adaptation of species exhibiting sex-determined behavior differences (philopatric).
Thus, this study, disseminated by three news outlets, suggested that resilience of populations of fisheries and other stressors may differ across the range of species. These results have been downloaded over 7,800 times and lend insight to effectively use historical records to understand how different ranges of species may react in face of changing climate.