Allozyme divergence and systematics of Common mole-rats (Cryptomys, Bathyergidae, Rodentia) from Zambia

Eviatar Nevo, Maria Grazia Filippucci, Hynek Burda, Jiri Kocka

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Studied allozymic diversity encoded by 34 gene loci in African common mole-rats, Cryptomys sp.,comprising two populations from Zambia and re-analyzed allozymic diversity encoded by 25 geneloci in Cryptomys damarensis, C. hottentotus, and C. natalensis from South Africa. This is the firstgenetic study of Cryptomys populations originating from outside the South African Subregion. Thedichotomy between C. damarensis on the one hand and C. hottentotus and C. natalensis on the otherhand revealed by previous studies was reconfirmed. Both Zambian populations are specifically distinctfrom each other and both are distant from all the South African species. Zambian Cryptomys are muchcloser to C. damarensis than to both other species. Interpretation of results of the allozymic study iscorroborated by data on other biological aspects. We show that currently used morphological criteriafor Classification of Cryptomys are apparently wrong and that the genus Cryptomys requires urgently amodern large-scale revision based on a lozymes, karyotypes and phenotypic variations.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)42-51
Number of pages10
JournalZeitschrift für Säugetierkunde : im Auftrage der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Säugetierkunde e.V
Volume59
StatePublished - 1994

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