Phylogeny and Rates of Molecular Evolution in the Aphelocoma Jays (Corvidae)
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Issue Date
1992-01-01Author
Peterson, A. Townsend
Publisher
Central Ornithology Publication Office
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, publisher version
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Show full item recordAbstract
I examined hypotheses of Aphelocoma jay phylogeny derived from allozyme data. Results from various algorithms differ in details, but the overall patterns are consistent: Scrub Jays (A. coerulescens) and Unicolored Jays (A. unicolor) were derived independently from different populations of Gray-breasted Jays (A. ultramarina). Within Scrub Jays, the californica subspecies group was derived from the populations of interior North America (woodhouseii group). One Unicolored Jay population and two Scrub Jay populations, all strongly differentiated, are placed consistently at the base of the phylogeny, but phenotypic, biogeographic, and theoretical evidence suggests that these populations represent rapidly evolving populations derived from within populations of their respective species. Because analyses of rates of molecular evolution demonstrate significant rate heterogeneity, I suggest that the application of a molecular clock to date-splitting events in the Aphelocoma jays is not a valid approach.
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Citation
Peterson, A. Townsend. (1992). "Phylogeny and Rates of Molecular Evolution in the Aphelocoma Jays (Corvidae)." The Auk, 109(1):134-148. http://www.dx.doi.org/10.2307/4088274.
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