Population genetic structure of the endangered limpet Patella ferruginea (Gastropoda: Patellidae) in the western Mediterranean: new evidence implicating marine barriers’ effects

ABSTRACT

Many studies on population genetic structure of the endangered limpet Patella ferruginea (Gmelin, 1791) have been performed in the western Mediterranean region but the 1622 km of the Algerian continental coastline has been understudied. In the present study, fifty one individuals of P. ferruginea were sampled across seven stations along the Algerian coast. Molecular analyses were performed sequencing a fragment of the mitochondrial gene, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I of P. ferruginea individuals in order to investigate the presence of population genetic structure in the Algerian region and other areas of the western Mediterranean. The results showed significant genetic differentiation among P. ferruginea populations of the easternmost western Mediterranean Sea and the remaining parts of the western Mediterranean. Both the Siculo-Tunisian Strait and surface currents’ instabilities in the eastern part of the Algerian basin could be considered as marine barriers leading to the detected genetic differentiation among P. ferruginea populations in the western Mediterranean. However, anthropogenic pressure (including translocations by ballast waters and overharvesting) could also be an important element influencing the regional genetic structure of natural P. ferruginea populations.

KEYWORDS:

• Phylogeography
• marine front
• hydrodynamism
• limpets
• Algerian coast
• mitochondrial DNA

Acknowledgements

The first author warmly thanks all the members of the ACUIGEN laboratory, University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain), especially the coordinator Prof. Paulino MARTÍNEZ PORTELA for providing logistic facilities to carry out this work. The first author would like to thank Dean Dina Lila Soualili (Faculty of Natural Science and Life, University of Mostaganem, Algeria) for providing the necessary financial assistance to carry out a short-term internship at the ACUIGEN laboratory. ZB and KM thank Pedro Fiz Rocha Correa for putting them in touch with the ACUIGEN Research Group. The authors are also grateful to the Associate Editor and to two anonymous reviewers for providing highly detailed reviews.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded in part by the General directorate of Scientific Research and Technological Development (DGRSDT) under the authority of the Minister for the scientific research (MESRS – Algeria).