title: Genetic and morphometric diversity of the goldcrest (Regulus regulus) populations in the Azores.
abstract: We studied the genetic diversity and phylogeography of the goldcrest Regulus regulus from the archipelago of the Azores (North Atlantic Ocean) based on sequences of two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2) and one nuclear gene in the Z-chromosome (intron 9 of the aconitase 1) from 69 individuals, and 41 birds from the Canary Islands and continental Europe for outgroup comparison. To understand the level of concordance between the genetic data and possible morphometric variability, 197 adult living birds from the seven Azorean islands where the species breeds were analysed in terms of eight morphometric characters. Our results are in accordance with previous studies, indicating a recent expansion of goldcrests throughout the archipelago and a low divergence in relation to continental Europe. Within the Azores, there is evidence of historical and/or recent gene flow among the island's populations, revealing a lack of current genetic structure within the archipelago. Only goldcrests from Flores Island seem to be genetically distinct and showed significantly larger body mass and tarsus length than birds on the other islands.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, Rua da Mãe de Deus, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal. Electronic address: pedrorodrigues@uac.pt.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ricardo J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, Rua da Mãe de Deus, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
authors.forename: Joana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Micael
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, Rua da Mãe de Deus, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Resendes
authors.affiliation: Marine and Environmental Research Centre (IMAR/CMA), Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, 3001-401 Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Jaime A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Ramos
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, Rua da Mãe de Deus, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
authors.forename: Regina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tristão da Cunha
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001394:Azores; D049628:Body Size; D045303:Cytochromes b / Q000235:genetics; D005060:Europe; D014644:Genetic Variation; D009245:NADH Dehydrogenase / Q000235:genetics; D046109:Passeriformes / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D045303:Cytochromes b; D009245:NADH Dehydrogenase
keywords: Azores; Biometrics; Goldcrest; Phylogeography; Regulus regulus