Characterisation of nine microsatellite loci in the caecilian amphibian Boulengerula uluguruensis (Gymnophiona), and their cross-species utility in three congeneric species

Abstract

We characterise nine polymorphic microsatellites for the caecilian amphibian Boulengerula (cf.) uluguruensis. We found between five and 13 alleles per locus in 17 individuals from six sites across four Eastern Arc Mountain blocks and coastal forest in Tanzania. In the population with the largest sample size (Uluguru North, n = 8), two loci deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. We also report cross-species utility of these markers in three other Boulengerula species (B. taitanus, B. niedeni, and B. boulengeri), and populations representing potentially undescribed species, approximately proportionate to their phylogenetic divergence from B. uluguruensis. The loci have the potential to quantify reproductive success (in view of skin feeding, a unique mode of parental care) and to determine the genetic structure of local populations, providing vital information for conservation studies of this endangered and little studied genus.