Speciation in the deep: genomics and morphology reveal a new species of beaked whale Mesoplodon eueu

Carroll, E. L. et al. (2021) Speciation in the deep: genomics and morphology reveal a new species of beaked whale Mesoplodon eueu. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B: Biological Sciences, 288(1961), 20211213. (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1213) (PMID:34702078) (PMCID:PMC8548795)

Abstract

The deep sea has been described as the last major ecological frontier, as much of its biodiversity is yet to be discovered and described. Beaked whales (ziphiids) are among the most visible inhabitants of the deep sea, due to their large size and worldwide distribution, and their taxonomic diversity and much about their natural history remain poorly understood. We combine genomic and morphometric analyses to reveal a new Southern Hemisphere ziphiid species, Ramari's beaked whale, Mesoplodon eueu, whose name is linked to the Indigenous peoples of the lands from which the species holotype and paratypes were recovered. Mitogenome and ddRAD-derived phylogenies demonstrate reciprocally monophyletic divergence between M. eueu and True's beaked whale (M. mirus) from the North Atlantic, with which it was previously subsumed. Morphometric analyses of skulls also distinguish the two species. A time-calibrated mitogenome phylogeny and analysis of two nuclear genomes indicate divergence began circa 2 million years ago (Ma), with geneflow ceasing 0.35–0.55 Ma. This is an example of how deep sea biodiversity can be unravelled through increasing international collaboration and genome sequencing of archival specimens. Our consultation and involvement with Indigenous peoples offers a model for broadening the cultural scope of the scientific naming process.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Davison, Mr Nick

Creator Roles

Davison, N. J.: Funding acquisition, Resources, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing

• Authors: Carroll, E. L., McGowen, M. R., McCarthy, M. L., Marx, F. G., Aguilar, N., Dalebout, M. L., Dreyer, S., Gaggiotti, O. E., Hansen, S. S., van Helden, A., Onoufriou, A. B., Baird, R. W., Baker, C. S., Berrow, S., Cholewiak, D., Claridge, D., Constantine, R., Davison, N. J., Eira, C., Fordyce, R. E., Gatesy, J., Hofmeyr, G. J. G., Martín, V., Mead, J. G., Mignucci-Giannoni, A. A., Morin, P. A., Reyes, C., Rogan, E., Rosso, M., Silva, M. A., Springer, M. S., Steel, D., and Olsen, M. T.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B: Biological Sciences
• Publisher: The Royal Society
• ISSN: 0962-8452
• ISSN (Online): 1471-2954
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B: Biological Sciences 288(1961): 20211213
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License