A Tale of Two Turtles: Sympatry of Two Lotic Musk Turtle Species in the Pascagoula River Drainage

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-1-2024

School

Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences

Abstract

Competition and hybridization between closely related species have remained topics of interest for decades. The ranges of the Razorback Musk Turtle (Sternotherus carinatus) and Stripe-necked Musk Turtle (Sternotherus peltifer) are mostly non-overlapping, but they are sympatric in south and central Mississippi, USA. In allopatry, each species fills the niche of a lotic, bottom-walking musk turtle and each can range in habitat from small, montane headwater streams to large, muddy bayous in the coastal plain. Using environmental, morphological, and genetic data, we assessed whether the two species exhibit different habitat associations, differ in morphology, and maintain reproductive isolation in sympatry. The two species differed significantly in habitat association in sympatry, with the Stripe-necked Musk Turtle occurring primarily in small streams or headwater stream habitats and the Razorback Musk Turtles frequenting larger riverine habitats. The two species occurred in syntopy in intermediate habitats, and while we detected three individuals with mixed ancestry, hybridization is likely precluded by both pre-and postzygotic barriers, notably the significant differences in body size between species and the reversed sexual size dimorphism exhibited by each species.

Publication Title

Herpetological Conservation and Biology

Volume

19

Issue

2

First Page

275

Last Page

288

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