Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Volume 276, Issue 1664, Pages 2001-2007Publisher
ROYAL SOC
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.1881
Keywords
taxonomic impediment; Australia; gekkonid lizards; cryptic species; new species; Diplodactylus
Categories
Funding
- Australian Biological Resources Survey
- Australia Pacific Science Foundation
- Mark Mitchell Foundation
Ask authors/readers for more resources
A major problem for biodiversity conservation and management is that a significant portion of species diversity remains undocumented (the 'taxonomic impediment'). This problem is widely acknowledged to be dire among invertebrates and in developing countries; here, we demonstrate that it can be acute even in conspicuous animals (reptiles) and in developed nations (Australia). A survey of mtDNA, allozyme and chromosomal variation in the Australian gecko, genus Diplodactylus, increases overall species diversity estimates from 13 to 29. Four nominal species each actually represent multi-species complexes; three of these species complexes are not even monophyletic. The high proportion of cryptic species discovered emphasizes the importance of continuing detailed assessments of species diversity, even in apparently well-known taxa from industrialized countries.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available