Redefining the Distributional Boundaries and Phylogenetic Relationships for Ctenomids From Central Argentina.

With about 68 recognized living species, subterranean rodents of the genus are found in a multiplicity of habitats, from the dunes of the Atlantic coast to the Andes Mountains, including environments ranging from humid steppes of Pampas to the dry deserts of Chaco region. However, this genus needs an exhaustive reevaluation of its systematic and phylogenetic relationships regarding the different groups that compose it. This knowledge is essential to propose biodiversity conservation strategies both at species level and at higher hierarchical levels.

An allometric analysis of sexual dimorphism in Ctenomys australis: integrating classic morphometry and functional performance in vivo.

The South American rodents of the genus Ctenomys (Rodentia, Hystricognathi), which use both forelimbs and incisors to dig, show strong, specialized morphological adaptations to living in the underground niche. In these rodents, the effectiveness of a bite - in this case the potential to inflict physical damage - mostly depends on the strength of the incisors (e.g.

Landscape genetics in the subterranean rodent Ctenomys "chasiquensis" associated with highly disturbed habitats from the southeastern Pampas region, Argentina.

Studies of genetic differentiation in fragmented environments help us to identify those landscape features that most affect gene flow and dispersal patterns. Particularly, the assessment of the relative significance of intrinsic biological and environmental factors affecting the genetic structure of populations becomes crucial. In this work, we assess the current dispersal patterns and population structure of Ctenomys "chasiquensis", a vulnerable and endemic subterranean rodent distributed on a small area in Central Argentina, using 9 polymorphic microsatellite loci.

Selection on MHC in a Context of Historical Demographic Change in 2 Closely Distributed Species of Tuco-tucos (Ctenomys australis and C. talarum).

Selection necessarily acts within the same current and historical demographic framework as neutral evolutionary processes, and the outcome of the interplay between these forces may vary according to their relative strength. In this study, we compare the variation at a major histocompatibility complex (MHC) locus (DRB exon 2), typically subject to strong diversifying selection, and mitochondrial diversity (D-loop) across populations encompassing the entire distribution of 2 species of South American subterranean rodents: Ctenomys australis and C. talarum (tuco-tucos).