title: Population Genetic Structure of the Dwarf Seahorse (Hippocampus zosterae) in Florida.
abstract: The dwarf seahorse (Hippocampus zosterae) is widely distributed throughout near-shore habitats of the Gulf of Mexico and is of commercial significance in Florida, where it is harvested for the aquarium and curio trades. Despite its regional importance, the genetic structure of dwarf seahorse populations remains largely unknown. As an aid to ongoing conservation efforts, we employed three commonly applied mtDNA markers (ND4, DLoop and CO1) to investigate the genetic structuring of H. zosterae in Florida using samples collected throughout its range in the state. A total of 1450 bp provided sufficient resolution to delineate four populations of dwarf seahorses, as indicated by significant fixation indices. Despite an overall significant population structure, we observed evidence of interbreeding between individuals from geographically distant sites, supporting the hypothesis that rafting serves to maintain a degree of population connectivity. All individuals collected from Pensacola belong to a single distinct subpopulation, which is highly differentiated from the rest of Floridian dwarf seahorses sampled. Our findings highlight the utility of mtDNA markers in evaluating barriers to gene flow and identifying genetically distinct populations, which are vital to the development of comprehensive conservation strategies for exploited taxa.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America; Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fedrizzi
authors.affiliation: Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America; Department of Ichthyology, Division of Vertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Melanie L J
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Stiassny
authors.affiliation: Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Boehm
authors.affiliation: Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America; Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Eric R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Dougherty
authors.affiliation: Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Amato
authors.affiliation: Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America; Latin America and Caribbean Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, Bronx, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mendez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001947:Breeding; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000032:analysis*; D005431:Florida; D051456:Gene Flow; D005828:Genetics, Population; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D058974:Phylogeography; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000379:methods*; D023701:Smegmamorpha / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial