Phylogeography of the steppe field mouse, Apodemus witherbyi Thomas, 1902 in the Middle East (Rodentia: Muridae)

Amineh Khajehpanah; Roohollah Siahsarvie; Omid Mirshamsi; Hamid Haddadian Shad; Johan Michaux

doi:10.26496/bjz.2026.207

Authors

Amineh Khajehpanah Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Roohollah Siahsarvie Rodentology Research Department, Institute of Applied Zoology, Faculty of Science, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Omid Mirshamsi Research Department of Zoological Innovations, Institute of Applied Zoology, Faculty of Science, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Hamid Haddadian Shad Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Johan Michaux Conservation Genetics Laboratory, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2026.207

Keywords:

Apodemus witherbyi, phylogeography, mitochondrial DNA, Middle East

Abstract

Geographic genetic variation at the regional level can be investigated using molecular methods by inferring phylogeographic structures within species. Small rodents are an interesting model for such kind of investigations due to their high variability. In this study, in order to assess the phylogeographic structure of the steppe field mouse, Apodemus witherbyi, DNA sequence data of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene were analyzed from 100 individuals sampled at different localities across the Middle East region. Genetic variation among different population of this species is generally low. However, in certain areas like northeast Iran, Turkmenistan and northern, northeastern, and eastern Turkey, A. witherbyi shows higher genetic diversity indicating that these regions may have served as refugia for this species during the Quaternary. The effect of past climatic fluctuations on the genetic diversity and genetic structure of the steppe field mouse may be less pronounced than for other small mammals from the Western Palaearctic region.

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