title: Is there a distinct harbor porpoise subpopulation in the Marmara Sea?
abstract: Genetic population structure of geographically isolated endangered Black Sea harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena relicta) is little known in Turkish waters, especially in the Turkish Straits System (TSS- Marmara Sea, Bosphorus and Dardanelles), which connects the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea. Mitochondrial DNA sequences of 70 new individuals sampled in the Turkish Black Sea, TSS and Aegean Sea, revealed five new haplotypes from the Black Sea. The findings support the idea that harbor porpoises from the Black Sea dispersed into the Aegean through the TSS. Considering signatures of population expansion, all subpopulations showed a signature of population expansion. The network data and the Фst calculations indicated that the Marmara Sea subpopulation was significantly differentiated from all of the other subpopulations, and supports the notion of its isolated. The finding of a potential management unit (MU) within an already heavily impacted subpopulation as a whole suggests that the individuals of P. p. relicta inhabiting the Marmara Sea require a very rigorous conservation strategy to ensure the survival of this subpopulation, represented by its unique haplotype.
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Fisheries , Istanbul University , Laleli , Istanbul , Turkey.|b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Arda M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Tonay
authors.affiliation: c Institute of Environment Sciences , Boğaziçi University , Bebek , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Özge
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Yazıcı
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Fisheries , Istanbul University , Laleli , Istanbul , Turkey.|b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Ayhan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dede
authors.affiliation: d Faculty of Fisheries , Sinop University , Sinop , Turkey.
authors.forename: Sabri
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bilgin
authors.affiliation: b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.|e Faculty of Veterinary , Istanbul University , Avcılar , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Erdem
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Danyer
authors.affiliation: b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.|e Faculty of Veterinary , Istanbul University , Avcılar , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Işıl
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Aytemiz
authors.affiliation: c Institute of Environment Sciences , Boğaziçi University , Bebek , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Öncü
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Maracı
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Fisheries , Istanbul University , Laleli , Istanbul , Turkey.|b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Ayaka A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Öztürk
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Fisheries , Istanbul University , Laleli , Istanbul , Turkey.|b Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV) , Beykoz , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Bayram
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Öztürk
authors.affiliation: c Institute of Environment Sciences , Boğaziçi University , Bebek , Istanbul , Turkey.
authors.forename: Raşit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bilgin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D059038:Black Sea; D058893:DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic / Q000379:methods*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D050741:Phocoena / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D058974:Phylogeography; D014421:Turkey
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial
keywords: Management unit; Mitochondrial DNA; Phocoena phocoena; Population genetics; Turkish Straits System