Phylogenomics and species delimitation of the economically important Black Basses (Micropterus)

Informed management and conservation efforts are vital to sustainable recreational fishing and biodiversity conservation. Because the taxonomic rank of species is typically targeted in conservation and management strategies, success of these efforts depends on accurate species delimitation. The Black Basses (Micropterus) are an iconic lineage of freshwater fishes that include some of the world’s most popular species for recreational fishing and rank among the world's most invasive vertebrate species. Despite their popularity, previous studies to delimit species and lineages in Micropterus suffer from insufficient geographic coverage and uninformative molecular markers. Phylogenomic analyses of ddRAD data result in the delimitation of 19 species in Micropterus, which includes 14 described species, the undescribed but fairly well-known Altamaha Bass, Bartram’s Bass, and Choctaw Bass, and two additional undescribed species currently classified as Smallmouth Bass (M. dolomieu). We also prov...