Molecular systematics of Dipodomys elator (Rodentia : Heteromyidae) and its phylogeographic implications

Previous systematic studies, using morphometric, allozymic, and cytogenetic data, have produced conflicting results as to the relationship of Dipodomy s elator to other species of kangaroo rats. In this study, phylogenetic rel ationships of D. elator and other closely related taxa (D. merriami, D. phi llipsii, D. ordii, D. spectabilis, and D. nelsoni) were examined using nucl eotide-sequence data (1,143 bp) from the mitochondrial cytochrome-b gene. W ith 1 exception, all parsimony and neighbor-joining analyses (regardless of differential weighting scheme or method of calculating genetic distances) indicated that D. elator is most closely related to D. phillipsii. As a res ult, it is recommended that D. elator and D. phillipsii be included within the phillipsii species group.