Patterns of Mitochondrial DNA and Allozyme Evolution in the Avian Genus Ammodramus

Abstract

Analyses of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and allozymes were used to estimate phylogenetic patterns in the avian genus Ammodramus. Levels of interspecific genetic differentiation were greater than most previous estimates for other congeneric avian taxa. Phenetic and phylogenetic patterns were highly concordant for these two genetically independent data sets, suggesting a robust estimate of the evolutionary history of these sparrows. However, the genetic pattern was not concordant with an estimate of variation in skeletal morphometrics produced by Robins and Schnell (1971); we suggest that ecological pressures effect convergence in skeletal morphology. Independent calibrations of mtDNA and allozyme distances suggest times of divergence that differ by a factor of two among the species assayed.