Allozyme variation and systematics of the genus Apodemus (Rodentia : Muridae) in Asia Minor and Iran

Starch gel electrophoresis at 36 presumptive loci was used to study genetic variation and systematic status of 110 wood mice (genus Apodemus) from 19 sites scattered across Anatolia, Armenia, and Iran. Seventeen loci were mon omorphic and fixed for the same allele among populations, whereas 19 loci w ere found to be polymorphic or discriminant among samples. The following sp ecies were determined in the material: A. flavicollis, A. uralensis, A. her monensis, and a taxon provisionally called Apodemus cf. hyrcanicus. The stu dy material was compared with previously analyzed samples from western Anat olia, increasing the total material to 245 specimens from 31 localities. In general, the pattern of variation and level of genetic differentiation wit hin and among species were comparable between western and eastern samples. Intraspecific genetic distances were low, ranging from 0 to 0.051, but inte rspecific distances were an order of magnitude higher. Similarly, neighbor- joining trees showed negligible differentiation between populations of indi vidual species and no sign of intraspecific structuring. A. uralensis seems to prefer humid sites, whereas A. hermonensis and A. flavicollis also occu r in drier places. Individuals referred to Apodemus cf. hyrcanicus were lim ited to lowlands south of the Caspian Sea. Problems associated with the sys tematic relationships and taxonomy of A. falzfeini-julvipectus-hermonensis- arianus and A. cf. hyrcanicus from northern Iran are briefly discussed.