Meeting Abstract

P3.190  Friday, Jan. 6  Delineating cryptic species and populations of the cosmopolitan fireworm genus Eurythoe (Annelida: Amphinomidae) using High-Resolution Melting Analysis (HRMA). NGUYENBA, Andrew*; BORDA, Elizabeth; ALVARADO, Jaime R.; SCHULZE, Anja; Texas A&M University at Galveston; Texas A&M University at Galveston; Texas A&M University at Galveston; Texas A&M University at Galveston majora52@yahoo.com

Fireworms of the genus Eurythoe (Annelida: Amphinomidae) are represented by the circumtropical morpho-species Eurythoe complanata, which shows a broad geographic distribution and low morphological variation. Recent work, by others, of over 240 specimens yielded no clear diagnostic phenotypic characters to differentiate populations from coastal Brazil, Panama (Caribbean, Pacific), the Indian Ocean, and Mozambique. Within the same survey, evaluation of genetic data (mitochondrial COI and allozymes) revealed at least three cryptic species from specimens collected in Panama (Caribbean, Pacific), south Atlantic Islands and coastal Brazil. In this study, we explore the genetic variation and phylogenetic relationships of E. complanata populations from the Gulf of California, western coastal Mexico, and coastal Caribbean (Belize, Mexico, Panama) using nucleotide sequence data from two nuclear and two mitochondrial genes, and assess the utility of High-Resolution Melting Analysis (HRMA) as a rapid and inexpensive genotyping method to establish unambiguous genetic diagnostic characters to delineate Eurythoe species and infer population structure.