Vicariance and oceanic barriers drive contemporary genetic structure of widespread mangrove species Sonneratia alba J. Sm in the Indo-West Pacific

• Main Authors: Alison K. S. Wee, Teo, Jessica Xian Hui, Jasher L. Chua, Koji Takayama, Takeshi Asakawa, Sankararamasubramanian H. Meenakshisundaram, Onrizal, Bayu Adjie, Erwin Riyanto Ardli, Sarawood Sungkaew, Monica Suleiman, Nguyen Xuan Tung, Severino G. Salmo III, Orlex Baylen Yllano, M. Nazre Saleh, Soe, Khin Khin, Yoichi Tateishi, Yasuyuki Watano, Yoshiaki Tsuda, Tadashi Kajita, Edward L. Webb
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI 2017
• Subjects: QH1-(199.5) General Including nature conservation, geographical distribution; SD1-669.5 Forestry
• Online Access: https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42479/1/FULL%20TEXT.pdf; https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42479/; http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f8120483
• Institution: Universiti Malaysia Sabah

Patterns of genetic structure are essential for a comprehensive understanding of the evolution and biogeography of a species. Here, we investigated the genetic patterns of one of the most widespread and abundant mangrove species in the Indo-West Pacific, Sonneratia alba J. Sm., in order to gain insights into the ecological and evolutionary drivers of genetic structure in mangroves. We employed 11 nuclear microsatellite loci and two chloroplast regions to genotyped 25 S. alba populations. Our objectives were to (1) assess the level of genetic diversity and its geographic distribution; and (2) determine the genetic structure of the populations. Our results revealed significant genetic differentiation among populations. We detected a major genetic break between Indo-Malesia and Australasia, and further population subdivision within each oceanic region in these two major clusters. The phylogeographic patterns indicated a strong influence of vicariance, oceanic barriers and geographic distance on genetic structure. In addition, we found low genetic diversity and high genetic drift at range edge. This study advances the scope of mangrove biogeography by demonstrating a unique scenario whereby a widespread species has limited dispersal and high genetic divergence among populations.