Biometric and allozymic variations in the genus dryomys (Rodentia: Gliridae) in Turkey

Abstract

Biometric and allozymic variations were analysed in three populations of Dryomys nitedula one population of Dryomys laniger from Turkey. Multivariate analysis of 32 external and cranial measurements was performed on 44 specimens. Of the morphometric variables, twenty-six characters were found to be significantly different between both species (Tukey HSD, p < 0.05), and the total variance was explained by seven principle components (80.1%). The Black Sea population of D. nitedula and that of D. laniger were markedly separate on the first two canonical functions. The genetic analysis was carried out on 17 enzyme systems of 36 specimens. Nine out of twenty loci were found to be polymorphic in D. nitedula populations and five were polymorphic in D. laniger. Ldh and Gpi loci were fixed for different alleles between D. nitedula and D. laniger. The mean value of the fixation index (F ST = 0.13) indicated moderate to high genetic differences between the populations of D. nitedula. Nei's measure of genetic distance (D) varied from 0.006 to 0.030 among the populations of D. nitedula, whereas the highest genetic distance appeared between the Black Sea population of D. nitedula and D. laniger (D= 0.187).