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Article
Genetic structure and environmental niche modeling confirm two evolutionary and conservation units within the western spadefoot (Spea hammondii)
The western spadefoot (Spea hammondii) is a Species of Special Concern in California and is now under review by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for listing under the Endangered Species Act. We delineated poten...
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Article
Population genomic data reveal extreme geographic subdivision and novel conservation actions for the declining foothill yellow-legged frog
Genomic data have the potential to inform high resolution landscape genetic and biological conservation studies that go far beyond recent mitochondrial and microsatellite analyses. We characterize the relation...
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Article
Open AccessThe western painted turtle genome, a model for the evolution of extreme physiological adaptations in a slowly evolving lineage
We describe the genome of the western painted turtle, Chrysemys picta bellii, one of the most widespread, abundant, and well-studied turtles. We place the genome into a comparative evolutionary context, and focus...
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Article
Conservation and genetics of the frosted flatwoods salamander (Ambystoma cingulatum) on the Atlantic coastal plain
The federally threatened frosted flatwoods salamander, Ambystoma cingulatum, occurs in isolated populations on the coastal plain of northern Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. An earlier phylogeographic study b...
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Article
Open AccessEffective population size is strongly correlated with breeding pond size in the endangered California tiger salamander, Ambystoma californiense
Maintaining genetic diversity and population viability in endangered and threatened species is a primary concern of conservation biology. Genetic diversity depends on population connectivity and effective popu...
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Article
Open AccessShallow genetic divergence indicates a Congo–Nile riverine connection for the softshell turtle Trionyx triunguis
We sequenced 20 new, field-collected individuals for up to seven genes to explore the phylogeography and conservation genetics of the threatened Nile softshell turtle Trionyx triunguis, including the first known-...
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Article
Open AccessThe origin of tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum) populations in California, Oregon, and Nevada: introductions or relicts?
Whether intentionally or accidentally introduced, exotic species have the capacity to dramatically disrupt native communities. In central California, tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) have been introduced as...
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Article
Rangewide phylogeography and landscape genetics of the Western U.S. endemic frog Rana boylii (Ranidae): implications for the conservation of frogs and rivers
Genetic data are increasingly being used in conservation planning for declining species. We sampled both the ecological and distributional limits of the foothill yellow-legged frog, Rana boylii to characterize mi...
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Article
Open AccessTesting avian, squamate, and mammalian nuclear markers for cross amplification in turtles
We used PCR amplifications to assess 120 previously described nuclear markers for phylogeographic and phylogenetic analysis in turtles. Twenty-seven of 120 markers amplified a single PCR product for both the w...
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Article
Open AccessRetention of low-fitness genotypes over six decades of admixture between native and introduced tiger salamanders
Introductions of non-native tiger salamanders into the range of California tiger salamanders have provided a rare opportunity to study the early stages of secondary contact and hybridization. We produced first...
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Article
Open AccessRapid fixation of non-native alleles revealed by genome-wide SNP analysis of hybrid tiger salamanders
Hybrid zones represent valuable opportunities to observe evolution in systems that are unusually dynamic and where the potential for the origin of novelty and rapid adaptation co-occur with the potential for d...
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Article
Open AccessAssessing what is needed to resolve a molecular phylogeny: simulations and empirical data from emydid turtles
Phylogenies often contain both well-supported and poorly supported nodes. Determining how much additional data might be required to eventually recover most or all nodes with high support is an important pragma...
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Article
Conservation phylogenetics of the Asian box turtles (Geoemydidae, Cuora): mitochondrial introgression, numts, and inferences from multiple nuclear loci
Asian box turtles (genus Cuora, family Geoemydidae) comprise a clade of 12 aquatic and semiaquatic nominate species distributed across southern China and Southeast Asia. Over the last two decades, turtles through...
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Article
Candidate gene analysis of thyroid hormone receptors in metamorphosing vs. nonmetamorphosing salamanders
We used two different experimental approaches to test the hypothesis that thyroid hormone receptor (TR) variation is associated with alternate life cycles modes in ambystomatid salamanders. In the first experi...