Browsing by Author "Moreno, Rodrigo A."

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    DNA barcoding of marine polychaetes species of southern Patagonian fjords
    (2011) Maturana, Claudia S.; Moreno, Rodrigo A.; Labra, Fabio A.; Gonzalez-Wevar, Claudio A.; Rozbaczylo, Nicolas; Carrasco, Franklin D.; Poulin, Elie
    Accurate species identification remains a basic first step in any study of biodiversity, particularly for global changes and their consequences. Thus, there is a pressing need for taxonomic expertise in a broad range of taxa. DNA barcoding has proved to be a powerful alternative method to traditional morphological approaches, allowing to complement identification techniques for living organisms. In this study, we assess intraspecific and interspecific genetic divergence among marine polychaetes from Patagonian fjords of southern Chile, using mitochondrial Cytochrome c Oxidase Subunit I (COI) gene. Our results showed that a total of 13 polychaetes species identified in this study exhibited high levels of interspecific variation among 31 analyzed sequences. Mean pairwise sequence distances comparisons based on K2P within species ranged from 0.2 to 0.4%. In contrast, interspecific comparisons were much higher and ranged between 18 to 47%, with the exception of the congeneric species Asychis chilensis and Asychis amphiglypta that showed high levels of genetic similarities and absence of reciprocal monophyly. This study presents the first information on DNA barcoding for polychaetes species in the southern Chile, and it establishes the effectiveness of DNA barcoding for identification of marine polychaetes species from Patagonian Fjords, thus making it available to a much broader range of scientists.
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    Murciélagos de la Región Metropolitana de Santiago, Chile.
    (Sección Biodiversidad y Recursos Naturales Renovables, SEREMI Metropolitana del Medio Ambiente., 2014) Rodríguez San Pedro, Annia; Allendes, Juan Luis; Carrasco Lagos, Patricia; Moreno, Rodrigo A.
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    On some ecological aspects of the lugworm Abarenicola affinis chiliensis Wells, 1963 (Polychaeta: Scolecida: Arenicolidae) from shallow soft bottoms of northern Chile
    (2007) Moreno, Rodrigo A.; Rozbaczylo, Nicolas; Sepulveda, Roger D.; Marinkovic, Milko I.; Arntz, Wolf E.; Thatje, Sven
    We conducted an ecological study of a population of the polychaete Abarenicola affinis chiliensis in the shallow subtidal zone of Caleta Guardiamarina Riquelme in northern Chile. The study area is characterized by a hypoxic bottom consisting of fine sands and a silt-clay mixture, with high values of total organic matter content (TOM > 20%). During the two study periods (spring 1996 and 1997), the numerical contribution of A. affinis chiliensis to the total macrofauna was greater than 80%. A similar pattern was recorded for biomass, with A. affinis chiliensis surpassing 95% of the total macrofauna biomass. Statistical analyses did not detect significant differences in environmental and biotic variables between years (with the exception of salinity, which increased slightly), indicating temporal stability of these variables over the study period. Our results do not support the hypothesis of Wells that seawater temperatures act as a physical barrier impeding the dispersal of Abarenicola species. This hypothesis should be reexamined for some representatives of Abarenicola on the Pacific coast of South America.
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    Systematics and evolutionary relationships of the mountain lizard Liolaemus monticola (Liolaemini): how morphological and molecular evidence contributes to reveal hidden species diversity
    (2009) Torres-Perez, Fernando; Mendez, Marco A.; Benavides, Edgar; Moreno, Rodrigo A.; Lamborot, Madeleine; Palma, R. Eduardo; Ortiz, Juan Carlos
    The delimitation of species is a major issue in systematic biology and has been a re-emerging discipline in the last decade. A number of studies have shown that the use of multiple data sets is critical for the identification of cryptic species, particularly in groups with complex evolutionary histories. Liolaemus monticola is a montane lizard species distributed in central Chile (32 degrees-42 degrees S), with four described subspecies in a latitudinal gradient from north to south: L. m. monticola, L. m. chillanensis, L. monticola ssp. and L. m. villaricensis. In order to test the systematic status and phylogenetic relationships of the taxa included in the L. monticola group, we analysed morphological (morphometric and meristic) and molecular (allozyme and mitochondrial DNA) data sets. The results of the morphological analyses showed that meristic variables correctly assigned individuals with higher accuracy than did morphometric characters. The results of the analyses of allozyme data revealed eight diagnostic loci that are evidence for significant differences among the four L. monticola subspecies. Phylogenetic analyses with mitochondrial DNA data, including additional species, showed that the L. monticola group is polyphyletic. We postulate that the four current subspecies represent independent evolutionary lineages and must be raised to the specific level as L. monticola, L. chillanensis and L. villaricensis. The taxonomic status of the unnamed L. monticola ssp. remains unresolved, although we provide a preliminary proposal. (C) 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 96, 635-650.
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    The relative role of ecological interactions and environmental variables on the population dynamics of marine benthic polychaetes
    (2018) Labra, Fabio A.; Moreno, Rodrigo A.; Alvarado, Sergio A.; Carrasco, Franklin D.; Estay, Sergio A.; Rivadeneira V., Marcelo M.