20.500.12556/DiRROS-28578 Five hidden species in a widespread European vertebrate disentangling the alpine newt cryptic species complex through genomic phylogeography Through genomic phylogeography, previously unrecognised biodiversity can be revealed. The alpine newt serves as a case in point: this taxon carries highly distinct mtDNA clades and has a severely fragmented range. We obtain genome-wide data with target enrichment by sequence capture to delineate cryptic species and disentangle their phylogenetic relationships. Furthermore, we explore potential niche divergence and glaciation-driven distribution dynamics. On the basis of the uncovered genetic structure, we distinguish five main groups that we propose should be treated as distinct species. Limited interspecific genetic admixture often occurs away from current contact zones between these species, in line with a scenario of current range reduction, compared to the Last Glacial Maximum. A decline in suitable habitat also explains the fragmented nature of current species ranges. We uncover pronounced mito-nuclear discordance. We show that an ancient mtDNA lineage endemic to the Vlasina Plateau on the border between Serbia and Bulgaria, previously interpreted to be a ‘ghost lineage’, in fact represents a distinct species. However, it is nested considerably deeper inside the alpine newt species complex than mtDNA suggests. Our study illustrates how genomic phylogeography allows intricate evolutionary histories to be untangled. ghost lineage hybridisation Mesotriton alpestris speciation target sequence capture taxonomy hibridizacija Mesotriton alpestris speciacija tarčni zajem zaporedij taksonomija true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Neznano 2026-03-24 13:23:47 2026-03-24 13:23:48 2026-03-27 03:47:07 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 Nasl. z nasl. zaslona; Soavtorji: Anagnostis Theodoropoulos, Wouter Beukema, Johanna Ambu, Wiesław Babik, Daniele Canestrelli, Andrea Chiocchio, Dan Cogălniceanu, Milena Cvijanović, Manon C. de Visser, Christophe Dufresnes, James France, Alban Hyseni, Daniel Jablonski, Daria Kranželić, Simeon Lukanov, Iñigo Martínez-Solano, Borislav Naumov, Maciej Pabijan, Daniele Salvi, Bruno Schmidt, Konstantinos Sotiropoulos, Florina Stănescu, David Stanković, Emina Šunje, Márton Szabolcs, Emiliya Vacheva, Judit Vörös, Adnan Zimić, Ben Wielstra; Opis vira z dne 12. 3. 2026; str. 1-19 issue 5, [article no.] e70300 Vol. 35 Mar. 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2026-03-09 577.21 1365-294X 10.1111/mec.70300 271437827 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mec.70300 1 5037fb5f-277c-11f1-aa40-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=42425 RAZ_Koster_Stephanie_2026.pdf RAZ_Koster_Stephanie_2026.pdf 1 142146D6D95EB64C859ADC55FE23D4FC f9e4e699a767c036f55dc27049246dbf86f058d37053b43dfb2c8a715cb5a7d9 70beaf95-277c-11f1-aa40-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=42427 Nacionalni inštitut za biologijo 0 0 0