title: Phylogeography of the Buarremon brush-finch complex (Aves, Emberizidae) in Mesoamerica.
abstract: The Buarremon brush-finches represent a complex suite of populations distributed in the montane New World Tropics from Mexico south to South America. Traditional taxonomic arrangements have separated populations of this genus into three species, based on plumage variation, although plumage patterns are well known to exhibit homoplasy. We present a first detailed phylogeographic and phylogenetic study, focused on Mesoamerican populations, and signal the existence of strong differentiation among populations with a clear geographic structure. We find well differentiated clades for (1) the Sierra Madre Oriental and Sierra Madre del Sur in Oaxaca, (2) western Mexican populations, including the B. brunneinucha populations in the Sierra Madre del Sur and B. virenticeps, (3) Sierra Madre Oriental and Sierra de los Tuxtlas, (4) northern Central America, (5) southern Central America, (6) middle Central America, and (7) South America. We demonstrate a lack of concordance with plumage patterns, and argue for several additional species to be recognized in the complex.
authors.affiliation: Museo de Zoología "Alfonso L. Herrera," Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apartado Postal 70-399, México D.F. 04510, Mexico.
authors.forename: Adolfo G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Navarro-Sigüenza
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Townsend Peterson
authors.forename: Arpad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nyari
authors.forename: Gabriela M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: García-Deras
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: García-Moreno
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D017931:DNA Primers; D046369:Finches / Q000145:classification*; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005843:Geography; D010802:Phylogeny
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D004247:DNA