Comparative phylogeographic analyses between horseshoe crabs and their symbiotic planarian species, and understanding their co-evolutionary patterns and population histories.

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23770090
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Biodiversity/Systematics
• Research Institution: University of Miyazaki (2012-2014); Kyushu University (2011)
• Principal Investigator: NISHIDA Shin 宮崎大学, 教育文化学部, 准教授 (40423561)
• Project Period (FY): 2011-04-28 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: カブトガニ / カブトガニウズムシ / 共進化 / 分子系統地理 / 東アジア / 東南アジア

Outline of Final Research Achievements

There are three extant horseshoe crabs in Asia, known as a living fossil. Genetic subdivisions were detected in Japanese populations using mtDNA-AT rich marker and eight microsatellite loci. Two genetically distinct groups, the western and the eastern group were detected and the geographic boundary between these two groups is the Itoshima Peninsula, Fukuoka. Especially, population from the Iki Is., which lies in the bordering region between two genetic groups, was significantly differ from neighboring populations. I also studied about phylogenetic relationships of parasitic planarian species on Asian horseshoe crabs. The topology was almost consistent with their geographic distribution patterns. While, some region showed complicated relationships between host and parasites indicating that level of host specificity of this parasitic planarian species was not so high.

Free Research Field

分子系統・生態学