Tens of millions of years ago, the ancestors of the endangered Hispaniolan solenodon—a venomous mammal—diverged from other mammals. The size of a large brown rat, this creature resembles rodents but has a long cartilaginous snout, similar to a shrew; beady eyes; and lengthy claws. It is among the few mammals that’s developed the ability to produce toxic saliva, which it injects into prey with the help of its incisors. The species is found only in Hispaniola.
A research team, consisting of University of Illinois and the University of Puerto Rico researchers, have successfully sequenced the Hispaniolan solenodon’s mitochondrial genome. By doing so, they’ve confirmed that the mammal diverged from other mammals around 78 million years ago. Their research was published in Mitochondrial DNA.
“It survived the asteroid; it survived human colonization and the rats and mice humans brought with them that wiped out the solenodon’s closest relatives,” said study author Adam Brandt in a statement.
According to The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the mammal is considered endangered because its area of occupancy is estimated at less than 500-square-km, and it is restricted to forest habitats.
The team used next-generation sequencing to determine the mitogenome sequences for six Hispaniolan solenodon. Additionally, they found genetic variations in the specimens collected from the north and south Dominican Republic. “The regional genetic divergence supports previous morphological and genetic reports recognizing northern and southern subspecies in need of separate conservation plans,” the researchers wrote.
The 78-million-year date for the species’ divergence meshes with a geological theory regarding the region, which is believed to have once been connected to Mexico via a volcanic arc. How exactly Hispaniolan solenodon came to inhabit the region is up for debate.
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