The influence of the arid Andean high plateau on the phylogeography and population genetics of guanaco (Lama guanicoe) in South America

A comprehensive study of the phylogeography and population genetics of the largest wild artiodactyl in the arid and cold-temperate South American environments, the guanaco (Lama guanicoe), was conducted to detail patterns of molecular genetic structure related with phylogeographic history, barriers to gene flow, to describe and contrast the evolutionary history and patterns of gene flow among populations. Analyses of 514 bp of mtDNA sequence and 14 biparentally-inherited microsatellite markers of 314 individuals from 17 localities throughout their current distribution across Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile confirm the well-defined genetic differentiation and subspecies designation of populations geographically separated to the northwest (L. g. cacsilensis) and southeast (L. g. guanicoe) of the central Andes plateau. However, these populations are not completely isolated, as shown by admixture prevalent throughout a limited contact zone and a strong signal of expansion from north-to-s...