title: An endemic rat species complex is evidence of moderate environmental changes in the terrestrial biodiversity centre of China through the late Quaternary.
abstract: The underlying mechanisms that allow the Hengduan Mountains (HDM), the terrestrial biodiversity centre of China, to harbour high levels of species diversity remain poorly understood. Here, we sought to explore the biogeographic history of the endemic rat, Niviventer andersoni species complex (NASC), and to understand the long-term persistence of high species diversity in this region. In contrast to previous studies that have proposed regional refuges in eastern or southern of the HDM and emphasized the influence of climatic oscillations on local vertebrates, we found that HDM as a whole acted as refuge for the NASC and that the historical range shifts of NASC mainly occurred in the marginal regions. Demographic analyses revealed slight recent population decline in Yunnan and south-eastern Tibet, whereas of the populations in Sichuan and of the entire NASC were stable. This pattern differs greatly from classic paradigms of temperate or alpine and holarctic species. Interestingly, the mean elevation, area and climate of potential habitats of clade a (N. excelsior), an alpine inhabitant, showed larger variations than did those of clade b (N. andersoni), a middle-high altitude inhabitant. These species represent the evolutionary history of montane small mammals in regions that were less affected by the Quaternary climatic changes.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Deyan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Infectious Diseases Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China.
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100041, China.
authors.forename: Jilong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Yongbin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Zhixin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100041, China.
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lv
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100041, China.
authors.forename: Yuanbao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Infectious Diseases Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China.
authors.forename: Qiyong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Qisen
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D044822:Biodiversity; D002681:China; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics; D003710:Demography; D005580:Fossils; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005843:Geography; D010802:Phylogeny; D051381:Rats; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial