| Title |
Ancient DNA Elucidates the Controversy about the Flightless Island Hens (Gallinula sp.) of Tristan da Cunha
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
PLOS ONE, March 2008
|
| DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0001835 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Dick S. J. Groenenberg, Albert J. Beintema, René W. R. J. Dekker, Edmund Gittenberger |
| Abstract |
A persistent controversy surrounds the flightless island hen of Tristan da Cunha, Gallinula nesiotis. Some believe that it became extinct by the end of the 19th century. Others suppose that it still inhabits Tristan. There is no consensus about Gallinula comeri, the name introduced for the flightless moorhen from the nearby island of Gough. On the basis of DNA sequencing of both recently collected and historical material, we conclude that G. nesiotis and G. comeri are different taxa, that G. nesiotis indeed became extinct, and that G. comeri now inhabits both islands. This study confirms that among gallinules seemingly radical adaptations (such as the loss of flight) can readily evolve in parallel on different islands, while conspicuous changes in other morphological characters fail to occur. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profile of 1 X user who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 1 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 1 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 34 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 1 | 3% |
| United States | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 32 | 94% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher | 10 | 29% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 5 | 15% |
| Student > Master | 4 | 12% |
| Professor > Associate Professor | 3 | 9% |
| Other | 2 | 6% |
| Other | 6 | 18% |
| Unknown | 4 | 12% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 23 | 68% |
| Environmental Science | 2 | 6% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 2 | 6% |
| Arts and Humanities | 1 | 3% |
| Social Sciences | 1 | 3% |
| Other | 0 | 0% |
| Unknown | 5 | 15% |