Hydrologic and geologic history of the Ozark Plateau drive phylogenomic patterns in a cave-obligate salamander

Aim: Habitat specialization can constrain patterns of dispersal and drive allopatric
speciation in organisms with limited dispersal ability. Herein, we tested biogeographic
patterns and dispersal in a salamander with surface-dwelling larvae and obligate
cave-dwelling adults.
Location: Ozark Plateau, eastern North America.
Methods: A population-level phylogeny of grotto salamanders (Eurycea spelaea complex)
was reconstructed using mitochondrial (mtDNA) and multi-locus nuclear DNA
(nucDNA), primarily derived from anchored hybrid enrichment (AHE). We tested
patterns of molecular variance among populations and associations between genetic
distance and geographic features.
Results: Divergence time estimates suggest rapid formation of three major lineages
in the Middle Miocene. Contemporary gene flow among divergent lineages appears
negligible, and mtDNA suggests that most populations are isolated. There is a significant
association between phylogenetic distance and palaeodrainag...