Determining The Provenance And Conservation Needs Of Extralimital Six-Lined Racerunner (Aspidoscelis Sexlineata Lizards)
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2023
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Abstract
Habitat degradation and anthropogenic introduction of alien species are two of the
principal factors driving global reptile decline. With a significant number of reptiles at
risk of extinction, there is a growing need to locate and protect threatened native species
and identify introduced and potentially invasive populations. In Michigan, six-lined
racerunner (Aspidoscelis sexlineata) lizards are found in a single public game reserve,
322 km separated from the closest known other populations in Indiana. This population’s
small range and recent discovery has driven numerous calls for research into the whether
the population is an isolated endemic or a recent anthropogenic introduction of the lizard.
We used genetic sequence data and phylogenetic methods to study the provenance of the
extralimital population of six-lined racerunners in Michigan. We recover a close
relationship between the Michigan population and a single specimen from Indiana. This
result is consistent with either a recent anthropogenic introduction from the midwestern
United States or a native Michigan population. Further resolution between these opposing
hypotheses depends on increased sampling from the region, which, at present, has limited
representation in natural history collections. Given their narrow range, and without
definitive evidence of human introduction, we recommend that six-lined racerunner
lizards continue to be treated as endemic and threatened in the State of Michigan.
Description
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six-lined racerunners, conservation, phylogenetics, extralimital, Michigan
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31
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Moon, Quinn
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