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Unmasking evolutionary diversity among two closely related South African legless skink species (Acontinae: Acontias) using molecular data

Overview of attention for article published in Zoology, December 2016
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  • Good Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (66th percentile)
  • Good Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age and source (71st percentile)

Mentioned by

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1 patent
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1 Facebook page

Citations

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8 Dimensions

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16 Mendeley
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Title
Unmasking evolutionary diversity among two closely related South African legless skink species (Acontinae: Acontias) using molecular data
Published in
Zoology, December 2016
DOI 10.1016/j.zool.2016.11.005
Pubmed ID
Authors

Theo Busschau, Werner Conradie, Adriaan Jordaan, Savel R. Daniels

Abstract

We examined species boundaries among two phylogenetically closely related and morphologically similar South African fossorial legless skink species, Acontias breviceps and Acontias gracilicauda. Samples of these two species were collected throughout their distribution ranges and sequenced for three DNA loci (two mitochondrial loci, 16S rRNA and cytochrome b (Cyt b), plus the nuclear locus prolactin). Phylogenetic relationships were determined using maximum parsimony, Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood analyses of the combined DNA sequence data set. The total evidence topology retrieved two paraphyletic clades in both Acontias species with strong statistical support. The phylogenetic results revealed that A. breviceps specimens from the Eastern Cape Province were basal (Clade 1), while the Highveld specimens of A. breviceps from the Mpumalanga Province (Clade 2) were retrieved as sister to A. gracilicauda (Clade 1). In addition, the A. gracilicauda specimens from the interior of the Northern Cape Province (Clade 2) were found embedded within the A. occidentalis species complex. These clades were characterised by marked sequence divergence for the Cyt b locus. Furthermore, no maternal or nuclear haplotypes were shared between clades within both A. breviceps and A. gracilicauda, alluding to genetic and reproductive isolation. The results provide overwhelming evidence to assign A. breviceps from the Mpumalanga Highveld to a novel species. Further sampling is required to accurately delineate species boundaries within A. gracilicauda. The conservation implications of our results are briefly discussed.

Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 16 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 16 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 5 31%
Student > Postgraduate 3 19%
Lecturer 1 6%
Student > Bachelor 1 6%
Student > Doctoral Student 1 6%
Other 2 13%
Unknown 3 19%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 10 63%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 2 13%
Environmental Science 1 6%
Unknown 3 19%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 4. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 11 April 2023.
All research outputs
#8,261,756
of 25,373,627 outputs
Outputs from Zoology
#204
of 536 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#138,412
of 420,096 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Zoology
#2
of 7 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,373,627 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 66th percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 536 research outputs from this source. They typically receive more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 8.8. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 60% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 420,096 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 66% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 7 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has scored higher than 5 of them.