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Australian Journal of Zoology Australian Journal of Zoology Society
Evolutionary, molecular and comparative zoology
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Random non-coding fragments of lizard DNA: anonymous nuclear loci for the Australian skink, Tiliqua rugosa, and their utility in other Egernia-group species

Talat Hojat Ansari A , Terry Bertozzi B C , Jessica Hacking A , Steven J. B. Cooper B C and Michael G. Gardner A B D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Biological Sciences, Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia.

B Evolutionary Biology Unit, South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.

C Australian Centre for Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity and the School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia.

D Corresponding author. Email: michael.gardner@flinders.edu.au

Australian Journal of Zoology 62(6) 515-518 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO14085
Submitted: 16 October 2014  Accepted: 2 February 2015   Published: 17 February 2015

Abstract

We report the development of 48 anonymous nuclear loci from the Australian skink Tiliqua rugosa using 454 sequencing. These loci amplified across a Western Australian lineage (47 loci), a ‘northern’ lineage (48 loci) and a ‘southern’ lineage (46 loci). We further tested amplification for the related T. adelaidensis and Egernia stokesii where 37 and 34 loci amplified respectively. The loci showed variability within T. rugosa (22 polymorphic loci) and at least 27 loci also exhibited variation among the three species, highlighting the usefulness of these markers for phylogenetic, phylogeographic and population genetic analyses in T. rugosa and related species.

Additional keywords: DNA markers, phylogeography, squamate.


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