Microsatellite loci isolated from Chamaeleo chamaeleon

Abstract

The common chameleon, Chamaeleo chamaeleon (Linnaeus, 1758) is the northernmost representative of Chamaeleonidae family and the one with the largest distribution area. It occurs in southern Europe (Portugal, Spain and Greece), in some Mediterranean islands (Cyprus, Malta, Sicily and Crete), in North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt and Libya), and the Middle East (Turkey, Lebanon, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen) (Blasco et al. 1985; Miraldo et al. 2005; Miraldo and Paulo 2008). The study of 16S ribosomal mitochondrial DNA in this species showed very low variability in the Iberian populations compared to the North African populations (Paulo et al. 2002). It also suggested that populations of existing chameleons in Iberian peninsula were founded by chameleons from North Africa, through two separate colonizations, one from Mediterranean North African populations which originated the Mediterranean Malaga population; and the other from the Atlantic coast of Morocco which originated the Atlantic populations of Cadiz, Huelva and Algarve. These colonizations could have been recent (< 200 kya) and eventually human mediated (Paulo et al. 2002). However, the mitochondrial diversity was generally low and did not allow disentangle the relative timings of colonization. More variable markers are needed to assess in more detail the colonization patterns and genetic structure of these populations, that will be important for defining conservation measures. Here, we describe six polymorphic microsatellite markers developed for this species.