Phylogeography and Genetic Diversity in Mesoamerican Species

Mesoamerica, a global biodiversity hotspot, harbours complex landscapes from cloud forests to highland plateaus, which have shaped the evolutionary trajectories of numerous taxa. Phylogeographic studies in this region integrate genetic markers—such as mitochondrial DNA, nuclear loci and ultraconserved elements—with geographical and palaeoclimatic data to reconstruct historical patterns of population fragmentation, dispersal and admixture. Major geological features—including the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and the Nicaraguan Depression—have acted intermittently as barriers or corridors, driving vicariance and gene flow among lineages. During glacial cycles of the Pleistocene, fluctuating climates created refugia in montane cloud forests and lowland habitats, where populations persisted and accumulated distinct genetic signatures. Subsequent post-glacial expansions, range shifts and secondary contact have generated reticulate histories in birds, amphibians, plants and invertebrates. High-throughput sequencing of ultraconserved elements and single nucleotide polymorphisms now permits fine-scale resolution of cryptic diversity, revealing previously unrecognised lineages and informing conservation priorities. By elucidating how geological and climatic processes interact with species-specific traits to shape genetic diversity, phylogeographic research in Mesoamerica provides a model for understanding tropical diversification and guides management of endemic biota under contemporary environmental change.

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Phylogeography and Genetic Diversity in Mesoamerican Species publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in phylogeography and genetic diversity in mesoamerican species across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Phylogeography: the analysis of the spatial distribution of genetic lineages to infer population history and geographic processes.

Genetic diversity: the measure of variation in genetic composition among individuals or populations.

Vicariance: the splitting of populations by geographic barriers, leading to independent evolutionary trajectories.

Refugia: areas that remain environmentally suitable during adverse climatic periods, preserving genetic lineages.

Ultraconserved elements (UCEs): highly conserved genomic regions used as phylogenomic markers to resolve evolutionary relationships.

Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP): a variation at a single DNA base position, commonly employed to assess fine-scale genetic variation.

References

1. Combining ultraconserved elements and mtDNA data to uncover lineage diversity in a Mexican highland frog (Sarcohyla; Hylidae). PeerJ (2018).
2. Comparative Phylogeographic Analyses Illustrate the Complex Evolutionary History of Threatened Cloud Forests of Northern Mesoamerica. PLOS ONE (2013).
3. The geography of evolutionary divergence in the highly endemic avifauna from the Sierra Madre del Sur, Mexico. BMC Ecology and Evolution (2019).