The closure history of the Central American seaway: evidence from isotopes and fossils to models and molecules

AbstractThe Pleistocene and post-Pleistocene evolutionary history of many North Atlantic intertidal invertebrate species is well known, but the evolutionary history of the deep North Atlantic fauna is poorly understood, specifically whether colonization of the deep North Atlantic paralleled the patterns observed in shallow water. Contemporary pan-Atlantic species distributions could result from several colonization pathways that connected different regions of the Atlantic at different times (e.g. Arctic, Antarctic or Panamanian pathways). To test potential colonization pathways we quantified geographic variation in nuclear and mitochondrial markers from Atlantic samples ofNucula atacellana, a pan-Atlantic deep-sea protobranch bivalve, usingN. profundorumin the eastern central Pacific as an outgroup. We combined existing 16S data from North and South Atlantic populations ofN. atacellanawith new sequences of 16S, COI, and an intron of calmodulin from those populations, and newly sampled populations near Iceland. Population genetic analyses indicated a subtropical expansion via the Central American Seaway. We found no evidence for Transarctic migration to the Atlantic inN. atacellana, which suggests that colonization pathways may differ significantly between shallow- and deep-water fauna.

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How the Central American Seaway and an ancient northern passage affected flatfish diversification

10.1101/247304 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Lisa Byrne ◽

François Chapleau ◽

Stéphane Aris-Brosou

Keyword(s):

Molecular Data ◽

Central American ◽

Molecular Clocks ◽

Data Set ◽

As Species ◽

Central American Seaway ◽

History Of ◽

Clock Models ◽

Current Species ◽

Northern Species

AbstractWhile the natural history of flatfish has been debated for decades, the mode of diversification of this biologically and economically important group has never been elucidated. To address this question, we assembled the largest molecular data set to date, covering > 300 species (out of ca. 800 extant), from 13 of the 14 known families over nine genes, and employed relaxed molecular clocks to uncover their patterns of diversification. As the fossil record of flatfish is contentious, we used sister species distributed on both sides of the American continent to calibrate clock models based on the closure of the Central American Seaway (CAS), and on their current species range. We show that flatfish diversified in two bouts, as species that are today distributed around the Equator diverged during the closure of CAS, while those with a northern range diverged after this, hereby suggesting the existence of a post-CAS closure dispersal for these northern species, most likely along a trans-Arctic northern route, a hypothesis fully compatible with paleogeographic reconstructions.

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FLOW REVERSAL IN THE CENTRAL AMERICAN SEAWAY DURING OR AFTER THE OLIGOCENE MIOCENE TRANSITION

10.1130/abs/2017am-297585 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Andrew Jeffrey Fraass ◽

◽

R. Mark Leckie ◽

Christopher M. Lowery ◽

Robert DeConto

Keyword(s):

Flow Reversal ◽

Central American ◽

Central American Seaway

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Influence of the Central American Seaway and Drake Passage on ocean circulation and neodymium isotopes: A model study

Paleoceanography ◽

10.1002/2014pa002666 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 29 (12) ◽

pp. 1214-1237 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Patrik L. Pfister ◽

Thomas F. Stocker ◽

Johannes Rempfer ◽

Stefan P. Ritz

Keyword(s):

Ocean Circulation ◽

Drake Passage ◽

Central American ◽

Neodymium Isotopes ◽

Model Study ◽

Central American Seaway

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Comparing the impacts of Miocene–Pliocene changes in inter-ocean gateways on climate: Central American Seaway, Bering Strait, and Indonesia

Earth and Planetary Science Letters ◽

10.1016/j.epsl.2016.03.010 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 444 ◽

pp. 116-130 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Chris M. Brierley ◽

Alexey V. Fedorov

Keyword(s):

Central American ◽

Bering Strait ◽

Central American Seaway

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Relative abundance and activity patterns of terrestrial mammals in Pacuare Nature Reserve, Costa Rica

UNED Research Journal ◽

10.22458/urj.v9i1.1673 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 15-21

Author(s):

Stephanny Arroyo-Arce ◽

Ian Thomson ◽

Carlos Fernandez ◽

Roberto Salom-Perez

Keyword(s):

Costa Rica ◽

Nature Reserve ◽

Mammalian Species ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Abundant Species ◽

Camera Trap ◽

Central American ◽

Leopardus Pardalis ◽

Terrestrial Mammals ◽

History Of

Located in Costa Rica, Pacuare Nature Reserve has a long established history of wildlife monitoring programs primarily focused on species of nesting marine turtles and the Agami herons (Agamia agami) found within the reserve. Our research represents the first assessment on the local terrestrial mammal populations. Data was collected by using seven camera trap stations distributed within the boundaries of the reserve. From April 2015 to March 2016, and after a total of 1 643 camera trap nights, we were able to identify 11 terrestrial mammalian species distributed in six orders and nine families. The most abundant species was the common opossum (Didelphis marsupialis), followed by the ocelot (Leopardus pardalis). A noticeably absent species, otherwise common throughout the area, was the Central American agouti (Dasyprocta punctata). Our results are similar to those from other protected areas in the Northeastern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

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The role of Central American barriers in shaping the evolutionary history of the northernmost glassfrog,Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni(Anura: Centrolenidae)

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.6115 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. e6115 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Angela M. Mendoza ◽

Wilmar Bolívar-García ◽

Ella Vázquez-Domínguez ◽

Roberto Ibáñez ◽

Gabriela Parra Olea

Keyword(s):

Genetic Structure ◽

Central America ◽

Population Expansion ◽

Central American ◽

Fault System ◽

Mountain Range ◽

Amphibian Species ◽

Biogeographic History ◽

History Of ◽

The Impact

The complex geological history of Central America has been useful for understanding the processes influencing the distribution and diversity of multiple groups of organisms. Anurans are an excellent choice for such studies because they typically exhibit site fidelity and reduced movement. The objective of this work was to identify the impact of recognized geographic barriers on the genetic structure, phylogeographic patterns and divergence times of a wide-ranging amphibian species,Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni. We amplified three mitochondrial regions, two coding (COI and ND1) and one ribosomal (16S), in samples collected from the coasts of Veracruz and Guerrero in Mexico to the humid forests of Chocó in Ecuador. We examined the biogeographic history of the species through spatial clustering analyses (Geneland and sPCA), Bayesian and maximum likelihood reconstructions, and spatiotemporal diffusion analysis. Our data suggest a Central American origin ofH. fleischmanniand two posterior independent dispersals towards North and South American regions. The first clade comprises individuals from Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and the sister speciesHyalinobatrachium tatayoi; this clade shows little structure, despite the presence of the Andes mountain range and the long distances between sampling sites. The second clade consists of individuals from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and eastern Honduras with no apparent structure. The third clade includes individuals from western Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico and displays deep population structure. Herein, we synthesize the impact of known geographic areas that act as barriers to glassfrog dispersal and demonstrated their effect of differentiatingH. fleischmanniinto three markedly isolated clades. The observed genetic structure is associated with an initial dispersal event from Central America followed by vicariance that likely occurred during the Pliocene. The southern samples are characterized by a very recent population expansion, likely related to sea-level and climatic oscillations during the Pleistocene, whereas the structure of the northern clade has probably been driven by dispersal through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and isolation by the Motagua–Polochic–Jocotán fault system and the Mexican highlands.

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Falling Outside: Excavating the History of Central American Asylum Seekers

Law & Social Inquiry ◽

10.1111/j.1747-4469.2011.01243.x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 36 (03) ◽

pp. 569-596 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Susan Bibler Coutin

Keyword(s):

El Salvador ◽

Retrospective Analysis ◽

Civil Wars ◽

Asylum Seekers ◽

Central American ◽

Central Americans ◽

Asylum Law ◽

Legal Advocacy ◽

History Of ◽

Time Periods

This article takes a retrospective look at legal advocacy on behalf of Central American asylum seekers, which has been influential in the development of US asylum law and in the creation of an infrastructure to address immigrants' needs. The article considers three time periods when Central Americans have been deemed to fall outside of the category of refugee: (1) the 1980s, when US administrations argued that Central Americans were economic immigrants; (2) the 1990s, when civil wars in El Salvador and Guatemala came to an end; and (3) the 2000s, when some Salvadoran youths in removal proceedings have argued that they faced persecution as perceived or actual gang members. This retrospective analysis highlights the ways in which law can be creatively reinterpreted by legal actors, as well as how legal innovations carry forward traces of prior historical moments.

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The life history of the Long-wattled Umbrellabird Cephalopterus penduliger in the Andean foothills of north-west Ecuador: leks, behaviour, ecology and conservation

Bird Conservation International ◽

10.1017/s0959270900003373 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 81-94

Author(s):

Olaf Jahn ◽

Edwin E. Vargas Grefa ◽

Karl-L. Schuchmann

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Activity Pattern ◽

Central American ◽

North West ◽

Daytime Activity ◽

South West ◽

History Of ◽

Display Behaviour ◽

Male Activity ◽

Observation Period

SummaryThe rare and threatened Long-wattled Umbrellabird Cephalopterus penduliger inhabits the canopy and mid-storey level of humid to wet foothill and montane forests (150–1,800 m)of the Andean slopes of south-west Colombia and western Ecuador. Here we report on male activity pattern and display behaviour observed at one of two leks recently discovered in the vicinity of Playa de Oro, Rio Santiago, Esmeraldas Province, north-west Ecuador. Courtship behaviour of C. penduliger is compared with the Central American and Amazonian congeners (Bare-necked Umbrellabird C. glabricollis and Amazonian Umbrellabird C. ornatus). The lek of C. penduliger was active during the whole study period (February 1997 to January 1998), but both lek structure and daytime activity pattern changed markedly within the observation period.

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