A study of six species of microarthropods endemic to the Transantarctic Mountains finds genetic evidence that populations for three of the species had been genetically isolated from each other for at least 3.52 million years and that populations for the other three species had been isolated for less than 2 million years; the results suggest that the timelines of divergences correspond with large-scale changes in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet that would have affected the arthropods' ability to disperse and mingle with other populations.
Article #20-07925: "Genetic diversity of soil invertebrates corroborates timing estimates for past collapses of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet," by Gemma E. Collins et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Diana Wall, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO; e-mail: Diana.wall@colostate.edu ; Byron Adams, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT; e-mail: Byron_adams@byu.edu
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences