Preliminary analysis of the molecular phylogeography of <italic>Crocidura shantungensis</italic>

In order to clarify the phylogeographic relationships, refuge during the ice age, and subspecies differentiation of Crocidura shantungensis, the complete sequence of Cyt b gene of C. shantungensis collected from the eastern and northern regions of China, complemented with sequences available from GenBank, were analyzed together, totaling 297 sequences. A total of 128 haplotypes were found in the 297 samples of C. shandongensis. Nucleotide diversity is 0.010 77. The phylogenetic tree shows four main clades. Clade 1 includes East Asian individuals and is mainly composed of haplotypes from the eastern and northern regions of China (Heilongjiang, Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, Shandong, Inner Mongolia), Russia Far East, eastern Mongolia, Korean Peninsula and Republic of Korea islands. Clade 2 includes some haplotypes from Taiwan, China. Clade 3 includes haplotypes partly from the Republic of Korea islands. Clade 4 includes some haplotypes from the Jeju-do Island in Republic of Korea. A similar geographical pattern was also observed in the Median-joining network analysis. The largest genetic distance (0.020 6) occurred between Taiwan of China and the Republic of Korea islands, and the largest genetic differentiation (0.758 8) occurred between Taiwan of China and the Jeju-do Island in Republic of Korea. The smallest genetic distance (0.010 8) and genetic differentiation (0.272 2) occurred between East Asia and Taiwan of China. Neutral tests indicate C. shantungensis experienced two population expansions. The results of the Median-joining network suggest that the ice age refuges of C. shantungensis were Changbaishan Mountains (Heilongjiang and Liaoning) and Shandong Peninsula (Shandong) of China, and the Korean Peninsula. The geographic areas included in this study are divided into 4 geographic subspecies. One subspecies (C. s. shantungensis) is distributed in the eastern and northern regions of China (Heilongjiang, Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, Shandong, Inner Mongolia), Russia Far East, eastern Mongolia, Korean Peninsula and Republic of Korea islands. The other subspecies is found in Taiwan, China. The third subspecies is found in the Republic of Korea islands, and the fourth subspecies (C. s. quelpartis) is found in Jeju-do Island in Republic of Korea.