Was there a second adaptive radiation of giant tortoises in the Indian Ocean? Using mitochondrial DNA to investigate speciation and biogeography of Aldabrachelys (Reptilia, Testudinidae).

Abstract excerpt

A radiation of five species of giant tortoises (Cylindraspis) existed in the southwest Indian Ocean, on the Mascarene islands, and another (of Aldabrachelys) has been postulated on small islands north of Madagascar, from where at least eight nominal species have been named and up to five have been recently recognized. Of 37 specimens of Madagascan and small-island Aldabrachelys investigated by us, 23 yielded...

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