Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals
ABSTRACT Spatiotemporal environmental heterogeneity is a major evolutionary driver, which can cause profound phylogeographic complexity, particularly at the periphery of species ranges. Ringed seals display a highly disjoint distribution, occurring in high abundance throughout the circumpolar Arctic...
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Wiley
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71067 |
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| author | Morten Tange Olsen Ari Löytynoja Mia Valtonen Steen W. Knudsen Sofie Bang Casper Gunnersen Aqqalu Rosing‐Asvid Steven H. Ferguson Rune Dietz Kit M. Kovacs Christian Lydersen Jukka Jernvall Petri Auvinen Anders Galatius |
| author_facet | Morten Tange Olsen Ari Löytynoja Mia Valtonen Steen W. Knudsen Sofie Bang Casper Gunnersen Aqqalu Rosing‐Asvid Steven H. Ferguson Rune Dietz Kit M. Kovacs Christian Lydersen Jukka Jernvall Petri Auvinen Anders Galatius |
| author_sort | Morten Tange Olsen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Spatiotemporal environmental heterogeneity is a major evolutionary driver, which can cause profound phylogeographic complexity, particularly at the periphery of species ranges. Ringed seals display a highly disjoint distribution, occurring in high abundance throughout the circumpolar Arctic, as well as in the Baltic Sea, Lake Saimaa and Lake Ladoga. These relict Fennoscandian ringed seals were traditionally regarded as originating from a single colonisation event after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), but recent studies have challenged this perception. Here, we analyse 246 mitogenomes and 180 skulls to unravel the diversity and spatiotemporal pattern of diversification in Fennoscandian ringed seals. Contrary to previous assumptions, our results reveal a complex evolutionary history characterised by pre‐LGM diversification from Arctic ringed seals and possibly several Fennoscandian colonisation events. We hypothesise that Saimaa seals originate from Arctic ringed seals, from which they diverged prior to their arrival in Lake Saimaa. Ladoga seals appear to also originate from the Arctic, with secondary colonisation events from paleo‐Skagerrak–Kattegat–Baltic, while the Baltic ringed seals have mixed evolutionary origins. Lake Saimaa and, to some extent, Lake Ladoga ringed seals have experienced a loss of diversity and evolved divergent skull morphologies, likely as a result of colonisation bottlenecks, isolation and dietary specialisation, while Baltic Sea ringed seals have retained remarkably high levels of genetic and morphological diversity. Our study supports the classification of Saimaa, Ladoga and Baltic ringed seals as distinct taxa and highlights the need for management and conservation efforts to mitigate cumulative impacts of human activities and climate change on Fennoscandian ringed seals. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ae20512e3f984174ac413c85e4830eb5 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-ae20512e3f984174ac413c85e4830eb52025-08-20T02:14:02ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582025-03-01153n/an/a10.1002/ece3.71067Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed SealsMorten Tange Olsen0Ari Löytynoja1Mia Valtonen2Steen W. Knudsen3Sofie Bang4Casper Gunnersen5Aqqalu Rosing‐Asvid6Steven H. Ferguson7Rune Dietz8Kit M. Kovacs9Christian Lydersen10Jukka Jernvall11Petri Auvinen12Anders Galatius13Section for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Globe Institute University of Copenhagen Copenhagen K DenmarkInstitute of Biotechnology University of Helsinki Helsinki FinlandWildlife Ecology Group Natural Resources Institute Finland Helsinki FinlandNIVA Denmark Water Research Copenhagen DenmarkSection for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Globe Institute University of Copenhagen Copenhagen K DenmarkSection for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Globe Institute University of Copenhagen Copenhagen K DenmarkDepartment of Birds and Mammals Greenland Institute of Natural Resources Nuuk GreenlandFisheries and Oceans Canada Winnipeg Manitoba CanadaSection for Marine Mammal Research, Department of Ecoscience Aarhus University Roskilde DenmarkNorwegian Polar Institute Fram Centre Tromsø NorwayNorwegian Polar Institute Fram Centre Tromsø NorwayInstitute of Biotechnology University of Helsinki Helsinki FinlandInstitute of Biotechnology University of Helsinki Helsinki FinlandSection for Marine Mammal Research, Department of Ecoscience Aarhus University Roskilde DenmarkABSTRACT Spatiotemporal environmental heterogeneity is a major evolutionary driver, which can cause profound phylogeographic complexity, particularly at the periphery of species ranges. Ringed seals display a highly disjoint distribution, occurring in high abundance throughout the circumpolar Arctic, as well as in the Baltic Sea, Lake Saimaa and Lake Ladoga. These relict Fennoscandian ringed seals were traditionally regarded as originating from a single colonisation event after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), but recent studies have challenged this perception. Here, we analyse 246 mitogenomes and 180 skulls to unravel the diversity and spatiotemporal pattern of diversification in Fennoscandian ringed seals. Contrary to previous assumptions, our results reveal a complex evolutionary history characterised by pre‐LGM diversification from Arctic ringed seals and possibly several Fennoscandian colonisation events. We hypothesise that Saimaa seals originate from Arctic ringed seals, from which they diverged prior to their arrival in Lake Saimaa. Ladoga seals appear to also originate from the Arctic, with secondary colonisation events from paleo‐Skagerrak–Kattegat–Baltic, while the Baltic ringed seals have mixed evolutionary origins. Lake Saimaa and, to some extent, Lake Ladoga ringed seals have experienced a loss of diversity and evolved divergent skull morphologies, likely as a result of colonisation bottlenecks, isolation and dietary specialisation, while Baltic Sea ringed seals have retained remarkably high levels of genetic and morphological diversity. Our study supports the classification of Saimaa, Ladoga and Baltic ringed seals as distinct taxa and highlights the need for management and conservation efforts to mitigate cumulative impacts of human activities and climate change on Fennoscandian ringed seals.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71067climate changemitogenomemorphometricsphylogeographyquaternary |
| spellingShingle | Morten Tange Olsen Ari Löytynoja Mia Valtonen Steen W. Knudsen Sofie Bang Casper Gunnersen Aqqalu Rosing‐Asvid Steven H. Ferguson Rune Dietz Kit M. Kovacs Christian Lydersen Jukka Jernvall Petri Auvinen Anders Galatius Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals Ecology and Evolution climate change mitogenome morphometrics phylogeography quaternary |
| title | Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals |
| title_full | Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals |
| title_fullStr | Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals |
| title_full_unstemmed | Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals |
| title_short | Complex Origins and History of the Relict Fennoscandian Ringed Seals |
| title_sort | complex origins and history of the relict fennoscandian ringed seals |
| topic | climate change mitogenome morphometrics phylogeography quaternary |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71067 |
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