Phylogenetic and Demographic Insights into Kuhl’s Pipistrelle, Pipistrellus kuhlii, in the Middle East

Timothy C Bray,Osama B Mohammed,Abdulaziz N Alagaili

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0057306

Abstract

Kuhl’s pipistrelle is found from Europe and North Africa all of the way to Asia, yet studies have thus far concentrated on the western limit of its distribution. Here we form a multi-marker picture of the diversity of Kuhl’s pipistrelle at a mid point in the Arabian peninsula in an attempt to redress the western sampling bias and to represent a region from which no genetic data has thus far been presented for this species. The three Arabian Cytochrome b haplotypes showed a clear divergence of 19 substitutions from those found in either Europe or North Africa. Molecular dating suggests the Arabian population split from the remaining Kuhl’s somewhere between 0.7 and 1.7 million years before present around the time of a series of aridification events across northern Africa. Well supported lineages within Arabia are typical of that which may be seen after an expansion from multiple Pleistocene refugia, but may also reflect the loss of intermediate haplotypes during historical population fluctuations. A long-term population contraction coincides with climatic changes towards those conditions more typical of contemporary Arabia.

Highlights

The Arabian peninsula holds a central position between Africa and Asia as recognised by studies on human movements [1,2]
Arabia’s restricted connectivity with other land masses is reflected in high levels of endemism among vertebrates, including some,22% of,476 species found in the Arabian peninsula [4]
The most recent phase of this aridification is seen from 8500 years before present [8], but it is likely that conditions in Arabia mirrored those seen during the African shift towards more arid conditions as early as 2.8 mya [9]

Summary

Introduction

The Arabian peninsula holds a central position between Africa and Asia as recognised by studies on human movements [1,2] It represents a junction between Europe and Asia, incorporated into the distributions and migration routes of many species with a Eurasian distribution The break of the isthmus spanning the Bab al Mandab strait (,0.5 million years ago (mya) [5]) effectively split Arabia from the Horn of Africa biodiversity hotspot [4]. At this point widespread species occupied a pan-Middle Eastern range and were still moving into the peninsula from Africa as recently as 6000 years before present (e.g. Dorcas gazelle [6]). The most recent phase of this aridification is seen from 8500 years before present [8], but it is likely that conditions in Arabia mirrored those seen during the African shift towards more arid conditions as early as 2.8 mya [9]

Objectives

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Discussion

Conclusion