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Outputs (135)

Genomics of post-bottleneck recovery in the northern elephant seal. (2024)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A. R., Gkafas, G. A., Kang, H., Sarigol, F., Le Boeuf, B., Costa, D. P., …Li, S. (2024). Genomics of post-bottleneck recovery in the northern elephant seal. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 8, 686-694. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02337-4

Populations and species are threatened by human pressure, but their fate is variable. Some depleted populations, such as that of the northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris), recover rapidly even when the surviving population was small. The n... Read More about Genomics of post-bottleneck recovery in the northern elephant seal..

Ancient and modern DNA track temporal and spatial population dynamics in the European fallow deer since the Eemian interglacial (2024)
Journal Article
Baker, K. H., Gray, H. W. I., Lister, A. M., Spassov, N., Welch, A. J., Trantalidou, K., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2024). Ancient and modern DNA track temporal and spatial population dynamics in the European fallow deer since the Eemian interglacial. Scientific Reports, 14, Article 3015. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-48112-6

Anthropogenic factors have impacted the diversity and evolutionary trajectory of various species. This can be through factors such as pressure on population size or range, habitat fragmentation, or extensive manipulation and translocation. Here we us... Read More about Ancient and modern DNA track temporal and spatial population dynamics in the European fallow deer since the Eemian interglacial.

Kinship study reveals stable non-kin-based associations in a medium-sized delphinid (2023)
Journal Article
Hartman, K. L., Chen, I., van der Harst, P. A., Moura, A. E., Jahnke, M., Pilot, M., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2023). Kinship study reveals stable non-kin-based associations in a medium-sized delphinid. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 77(12), Article 137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-023-03411-w

Delphinids display a wide variety of social structures, in which local food availability and defensibility, sexual size dimorphism and interbirth intervals ultimately influence the role of kin within social units. Earlier studies of the social ecolog... Read More about Kinship study reveals stable non-kin-based associations in a medium-sized delphinid.

Where to now with the evolutionarily significant unit? (2023)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A. R. (2023). Where to now with the evolutionarily significant unit?. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 38(12), 1134-1142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2023.07.005

The designation of units for conservation has been a necessary but challenging objective since conservation efforts began. Most species are divided, typically by environment, into populations with independent evolutionary trajectories. There are prac... Read More about Where to now with the evolutionarily significant unit?.

Genomics reveals the role of admixture in the evolution of structure among sperm whale populations within the Mediterranean Sea (2023)
Journal Article
Violi, B., de Jong, M. J., Frantzis, A., Alexiadou, P., Tardy, C., Ody, D., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2023). Genomics reveals the role of admixture in the evolution of structure among sperm whale populations within the Mediterranean Sea. Molecular Ecology, 32(11), 2715-2731. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16898

In oceanic ecosystems, the nature of barriers to gene flow and the processes by which populations may become isolated are different from the terrestrial environment, and less well understood. In this study we investigate a highly mobile species (the... Read More about Genomics reveals the role of admixture in the evolution of structure among sperm whale populations within the Mediterranean Sea.

Widespread southern elephant seal occupation of the Victoria land coast implies a warmer-than-present Ross Sea in the mid-to-late Holocene (2023)
Journal Article
Hall, B. L., Koch, P. L., Baroni, C., Salvatore, M. C., Hoelzel, A. R., de Bruyn, M., & Welch, A. J. (2023). Widespread southern elephant seal occupation of the Victoria land coast implies a warmer-than-present Ross Sea in the mid-to-late Holocene. Quaternary Science Reviews, 303, Article 107991. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.107991

Prediction of future ice-sheet behavior in Antarctica and its contribution to sea-level rise depends on accurate understanding of ice-sheet response to a warm climate. Examination of how the ice sheet reacted to past warm episodes affords a means of... Read More about Widespread southern elephant seal occupation of the Victoria land coast implies a warmer-than-present Ross Sea in the mid-to-late Holocene.

Strong and lasting impacts of past global warming on baleen whales and their prey (2022)
Journal Article
Cabrera, A. A., Schall, E., Bérubé, M., Anderwald, P., Bachmann, L., Berrow, S., …Palsbøll, P. J. (2022). Strong and lasting impacts of past global warming on baleen whales and their prey. Global Change Biology, 28(8), 2657-2677. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16085

Global warming is affecting the population dynamics and trophic interactions across a wide range of ecosystems and habitats. Translating these real-time effects into their long-term consequences remains a challenge. The rapid and extreme warming peri... Read More about Strong and lasting impacts of past global warming on baleen whales and their prey.

Museum specimens of a landlocked pinniped reveal recent loss of genetic diversity and unexpected population connections (2022)
Journal Article
Heino, M. T., Nyman, T., Palo, J. U., Harmoinen, J., Valtonen, M., Pilot, M., …Aspi, J. (2023). Museum specimens of a landlocked pinniped reveal recent loss of genetic diversity and unexpected population connections. Ecology and Evolution, 13(1), Article 9720. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.9720

The Saimaa ringed seal (Pusa hispida saimensis) is endemic to Lake Saimaa in Finland. The subspecies is thought to have originated when parts of the ringed seal population of the Baltic region were trapped in lakes emerging due to postglacial bedrock... Read More about Museum specimens of a landlocked pinniped reveal recent loss of genetic diversity and unexpected population connections.

Evolutionary drivers of morphological differentiation among three bottlenose dolphin lineages, Tursiops spp. (Delphinidae), in the northwest Indian Ocean utilizing linear and geometric morphometric techniques (2021)
Journal Article
Gray, H., van Waerebeek, K., Owen, J., Collins, T., Minton, G., Ponnampalam, L., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2022). Evolutionary drivers of morphological differentiation among three bottlenose dolphin lineages, Tursiops spp. (Delphinidae), in the northwest Indian Ocean utilizing linear and geometric morphometric techniques. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 135(3), 610-629. https://doi.org/10.1093/biolinnean/blab133

Local adaptation and adaptive radiations are typically associated with phenotypic variation suited to alternative environments. In the marine environment, the nature of relevant ecological or environmental transitions is poorly understood, especially... Read More about Evolutionary drivers of morphological differentiation among three bottlenose dolphin lineages, Tursiops spp. (Delphinidae), in the northwest Indian Ocean utilizing linear and geometric morphometric techniques.

Comparative genomics provides insights into the aquatic adaptations of mammals (2021)
Journal Article
Yuan, Y., Zhang, Y., Zhang, P., Liu, C., Wang, J., Gao, H., …Li, S. (2021). Comparative genomics provides insights into the aquatic adaptations of mammals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(37), Article e2106080118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2106080118

The ancestors of marine mammals once roamed the land and independently committed to an aquatic lifestyle. These macroevolutionary transitions have intrigued scientists for centuries. Here, we generated high-quality genome assemblies of 17 marine mamm... Read More about Comparative genomics provides insights into the aquatic adaptations of mammals.

Population structure associated with bioregion and seasonal prey distribution for Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in South Africa (2021)
Journal Article
Vargas‐Fonseca, O. A., Yates, P., Kirkman, S. P., Pistorius, P. A., Moore, D. M., Natoli, A., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2021). Population structure associated with bioregion and seasonal prey distribution for Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in South Africa. Molecular Ecology, 30(19), 4642-4659. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16086

Many marine species exhibit fine-scale population structure despite high mobility and a lack of physical barriers to dispersal, but the evolutionary drivers of differentiation in these systems are generally poorly understood. Here we investigate the... Read More about Population structure associated with bioregion and seasonal prey distribution for Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in South Africa.

Conservation genetics of the European fallow deer: a reply to Marchesini et al (2021)
Journal Article
Baker, K. H., Gray, H. W., Pekşen, Ç. A., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2021). Conservation genetics of the European fallow deer: a reply to Marchesini et al. Mammalian Biology, 101(3), 313-319. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-021-00121-6

In this letter, we revisit a study we published in 2017, following comment in a paper by Marchesini et al. published in this volume. We provide some further analyses that help us to reinforce the original conclusions of our earlier paper, and to addr... Read More about Conservation genetics of the European fallow deer: a reply to Marchesini et al.

Comparative biogeography and the evolution of population structure for bottlenose and common dolphins in the Indian Ocean (2021)
Journal Article
Gray, H. W., Chen, I., Moura, A. E., Natoli, A., Nishida, S., Tanabe, S., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2021). Comparative biogeography and the evolution of population structure for bottlenose and common dolphins in the Indian Ocean. Journal of Biogeography, 48(7), https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14102

Aim In the marine environment, where there are few physical boundaries to gene flow, there is often nevertheless intraspecific diversity with consequences for effective conservation and management. Here, we compare two closely related dolphin species... Read More about Comparative biogeography and the evolution of population structure for bottlenose and common dolphins in the Indian Ocean.

Marine mammal conservation: over the horizon (2021)
Journal Article
Nelms, S., Alfaro-Shigueto, J., Arnould, J., Avila, I., Bengtson Nash, S., Campbell, E., …Godley, B. (2021). Marine mammal conservation: over the horizon. Endangered Species Research, 44, 291-325. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01115

Marine mammals can play important ecological roles in aquatic ecosystems, and their presence can be key to community structure and function. Consequently, marine mammals are often considered indicators of ecosystem health and flagship species. Yet, h... Read More about Marine mammal conservation: over the horizon.

Genomic signatures of divergent selection are associated with social behaviour for spinner dolphin ecotypes (2021)
Journal Article
Andrews, K. R., Epstein, B., Leslie, M. S., Fiedler, P., Morin, P. A., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2021). Genomic signatures of divergent selection are associated with social behaviour for spinner dolphin ecotypes. Molecular Ecology, 30(9), https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15865

Understanding the genomic basis of adaptation is critical for understanding evolutionary processes and predicting how species will respond to environmental change. Spinner dolphins in the eastern tropical Pacific (ETP) present a unique system for stu... Read More about Genomic signatures of divergent selection are associated with social behaviour for spinner dolphin ecotypes.

Detecting genetic signals of selection in heavily bottlenecked reindeer populations by comparing parallel founder events (2021)
Journal Article
Jong, M. J., Lovatt, F., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2021). Detecting genetic signals of selection in heavily bottlenecked reindeer populations by comparing parallel founder events. Molecular Ecology, 30(7), https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15837

Founder populations are of special interest to both evolutionary and conservation biologists, but the detection of genetic signals of selection in these populations is challenging due to their demographic history. Geographically separated founder pop... Read More about Detecting genetic signals of selection in heavily bottlenecked reindeer populations by comparing parallel founder events.

SambaR: An R package for fast, easy and reproducible population‐genetic analyses of biallelic SNP data sets (2021)
Journal Article
Jong, M. J., Jong, J. F., Hoelzel, A. R., & Janke, A. (2021). SambaR: An R package for fast, easy and reproducible population‐genetic analyses of biallelic SNP data sets. Molecular Ecology Resources, 21(4), https://doi.org/10.1111/1755-0998.13339

SNP data sets can be used to infer a wealth of information about natural populations, including information about their structure, genetic diversity, and the presence of loci under selection. However, SNP data analysis can be a time-consuming and cha... Read More about SambaR: An R package for fast, easy and reproducible population‐genetic analyses of biallelic SNP data sets.

Population genetic diversity and historical dynamics of Fraser’s dolphins Lagenodelphis hosei (2020)
Journal Article
Chen, I., Nishida, S., Chou, L., Isobe, T., Mignucci-Giannoni, A., & Hoelzel, A. (2020). Population genetic diversity and historical dynamics of Fraser’s dolphins Lagenodelphis hosei. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 643, 183-195. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13268

Marine organisms face relatively few barriers to gene flow, and yet even highly mobile species such as dolphins often show population structure over regional geographic scales. Understanding the processes that promote this pattern of differentiation... Read More about Population genetic diversity and historical dynamics of Fraser’s dolphins Lagenodelphis hosei.

Demography and adaptation promoting evolutionary transitions in a mammalian genus that diversified during the Pleistocene (2020)
Journal Article
De Jong, M., Li, Z., Qin, Y., Quemere, E., Baker, K., Wang, W., & Hoelzel, A. (2020). Demography and adaptation promoting evolutionary transitions in a mammalian genus that diversified during the Pleistocene. Molecular Ecology, 29(15), 2777-2792. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15450

Species that evolved in temperate regions during the Pleistocene experienced periods of extreme climatic transitions. Consequent population fragmentation and dynamics had the potential to generate small, isolated populations where the influence of ge... Read More about Demography and adaptation promoting evolutionary transitions in a mammalian genus that diversified during the Pleistocene.

Sex-specific impact of inbreeding on pathogen load in the striped dolphin (2020)
Journal Article
Gkafas, G. A., de Jong, M., Exadactylos, A., Raga, J. A., Aznar, F. J., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2020). Sex-specific impact of inbreeding on pathogen load in the striped dolphin. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 287(1922), Article 20200195. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.0195

The impact of inbreeding on fitness has been widely studied and provides consequential inference about adaptive potential and the impact on survival for reduced and fragmented natural populations. Correlations between heterozygosity and fitness are c... Read More about Sex-specific impact of inbreeding on pathogen load in the striped dolphin.

Phylogenomics of the genus Tursiops and closely related Delphininae reveals extensive reticulation among lineages and provides inference about eco-evolutionary drivers (2020)
Journal Article
Moura, A. E., Shreves, K., Pilot, M., Andrews, K. R., Moore, D. M., Kishida, T., …Rus Hoelzel, A. (2020). Phylogenomics of the genus Tursiops and closely related Delphininae reveals extensive reticulation among lineages and provides inference about eco-evolutionary drivers. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 146, Article 106756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106756

Phylogeographic inference has provided extensive insight into the relative roles of geographical isolation and ecological processes during evolutionary radiations. However, the importance of cross-lineage admixture in facilitating adaptive radiations... Read More about Phylogenomics of the genus Tursiops and closely related Delphininae reveals extensive reticulation among lineages and provides inference about eco-evolutionary drivers.

Genomic data suggest environmental drivers of fish population structure in the deep sea: A case study for the orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) (2019)
Journal Article
Gonçalves da Silva, A., Barendse, W., Kijas, J., England, P. R., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2020). Genomic data suggest environmental drivers of fish population structure in the deep sea: A case study for the orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus). Journal of Applied Ecology, 57(2), 296-306. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.13534

The accurate identification of conservation units is central to effective management strategies. However, marine environment populations often have large census sizes and few obvious boundaries to gene flow. Poorly understood species in the deep sea... Read More about Genomic data suggest environmental drivers of fish population structure in the deep sea: A case study for the orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus).

A global cline in a colour polymorphism suggests a limited contribution of gene flow towards the recovery of a heavily exploited marine mammal (2018)
Journal Article
Hoffman, J., Bauer, E., Paijmans, A., Humble, E., Beckmann, L., Kubetschek, C., …Lowther, A. (2018). A global cline in a colour polymorphism suggests a limited contribution of gene flow towards the recovery of a heavily exploited marine mammal. Royal Society Open Science, 5(10), Article 181227. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.181227

Evaluating how populations are connected by migration is important for understanding species resilience because gene flow can facilitate recovery from demographic declines. We therefore investigated the extent to which migration may have contributed... Read More about A global cline in a colour polymorphism suggests a limited contribution of gene flow towards the recovery of a heavily exploited marine mammal.

Hybridization in bottlenose dolphins—A case study of Tursiops aduncus × T. truncatus hybrids and successful backcross hybridization events (2018)
Journal Article
Gridley, T., Elwen, S., Harris, G., Moore, D., Hoelzel, A., & Lampen, F. (2018). Hybridization in bottlenose dolphins—A case study of Tursiops aduncus × T. truncatus hybrids and successful backcross hybridization events. PLoS ONE, 13(9), Article e0201722. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0201722

The bottlenose dolphin, genus Tursiops is one of the best studied of all the Cetacea with a minimum of two species widely recognised. Common bottlenose dolphins (T. truncatus), are the cetacean species most frequently held in captivity and are known... Read More about Hybridization in bottlenose dolphins—A case study of Tursiops aduncus × T. truncatus hybrids and successful backcross hybridization events.

Genomics of habitat choice and adaptive evolution in a deep-sea fish (2018)
Journal Article
Gaither, M. R., Gkafas, G. A., de Jong, M., Sarigol, F., Neat, F., Regnier, T., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2018). Genomics of habitat choice and adaptive evolution in a deep-sea fish. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 2(4), 680-687. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-018-0482-x

Intraspecific diversity promotes evolutionary change, and when partitioned among geographic regions or habitats can form the basis for speciation. Marine species live in an environment that can provide as much scope for diversification in the vertica... Read More about Genomics of habitat choice and adaptive evolution in a deep-sea fish.

Eco-Evolutionary Processes Generating Diversity Among Bottlenose Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, Populations off Baja California, Mexico (2018)
Journal Article
Segura-García, I., Rojo-Arreola, L., Rocha-Olivares, A., Heckel, G., Gallo-Reynoso, J. P., & Hoelzel, R. (2018). Eco-Evolutionary Processes Generating Diversity Among Bottlenose Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, Populations off Baja California, Mexico. Evolutionary Biology, 45(2), 223-236. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11692-018-9445-z

For highly mobile species that nevertheless show fine-scale patterns of population genetic structure, the relevant evolutionary mechanisms determining structure remain poorly understood. The bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is one such species... Read More about Eco-Evolutionary Processes Generating Diversity Among Bottlenose Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, Populations off Baja California, Mexico.

Cryptic Lineage Differentiation Among Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in the Northwest Indian Ocean (2017)
Journal Article
Gray, H., Nishida, S., Welch, A., Moura, A., Tanabe, S., Kiani, M., …Hoelzel, A. (2018). Cryptic Lineage Differentiation Among Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in the Northwest Indian Ocean. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 122, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.027

Phylogeography can provide insight into the potential for speciation and identify geographic regions and evolutionary processes associated with species richness and evolutionary endemism. In the marine environment, highly mobile species sometimes sho... Read More about Cryptic Lineage Differentiation Among Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in the Northwest Indian Ocean.

Genetic diversity of bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops sp.) populations in the western North Pacific and the conservation implications (2017)
Journal Article
Chen, I., Nishida, S., Yang, W., Isobe, T., Tajima, Y., & Hoelzel, A. R. (2017). Genetic diversity of bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops sp.) populations in the western North Pacific and the conservation implications. Marine Biology, 164(10), Article 202. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-017-3232-8

The evolutionary processes that shape patterns of diversity in highly mobile marine species are poorly understood, but important towards transferable inference on their effective conservation. In this study, bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) are stu... Read More about Genetic diversity of bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops sp.) populations in the western North Pacific and the conservation implications.

Biogeography and temporal progression during the evolution of striped dolphin population structure in European waters (2017)
Journal Article
Gkafas, G., Exadactylos, A., Rogan, E., Raga, J., Reid, R., & Hoelzel, A. (2017). Biogeography and temporal progression during the evolution of striped dolphin population structure in European waters. Journal of Biogeography, 44(12), 2681-2691. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.13079

Aim: We investigated the population genetic structure of a highly mobile marine species, the striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833), along a geographical range with habitat transitions and historical dynamics to identify the causes of g... Read More about Biogeography and temporal progression during the evolution of striped dolphin population structure in European waters.

Ancient female philopatry, asymmetric male gene flow, and synchronous population expansion support the influence of climatic oscillations on the evolution of South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens) (2017)
Journal Article
Oliveira, L. R. D., Gehara, M. C., Fraga, L. D., Lopes, F., Túnez, J. I., Cassini, M. H., …Bonatto, S. L. (2017). Ancient female philopatry, asymmetric male gene flow, and synchronous population expansion support the influence of climatic oscillations on the evolution of South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens). PLoS ONE, 12(6), Article e0179442. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0179442

The South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens) is widely distributed along the southern Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America with a history of significant commercial exploitation. We aimed to evaluate the population genetic structure and the... Read More about Ancient female philopatry, asymmetric male gene flow, and synchronous population expansion support the influence of climatic oscillations on the evolution of South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens).

Strong population structure in a species manipulated by humans since the Neolithic: The European fallow deer (Dama dama dama) (2017)
Journal Article
Baker, K., Gray, H., Ramovs, V., Mertzanidou, D., Akın Pekşen, Ç., Bilgin, C., …Hoelzel, A. (2017). Strong population structure in a species manipulated by humans since the Neolithic: The European fallow deer (Dama dama dama). Heredity, 119, 16-26. https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.2017.11

Species that have been translocated and otherwise manipulated by humans may show patterns of population structure that reflect those interactions. At the same time, natural processes shape populations, including behavioural characteristics like dispe... Read More about Strong population structure in a species manipulated by humans since the Neolithic: The European fallow deer (Dama dama dama).

Depth as a driver of evolution in the deep sea: Insights from grenadiers (Gadiformes: Macrouridae) of the genus Coryphaenoides (2016)
Journal Article
Gaither, M., Violia, B., Gray, H., Neat, F., Drazen, J., Grubbs, D., …Hoelzel, A. R. (2016). Depth as a driver of evolution in the deep sea: Insights from grenadiers (Gadiformes: Macrouridae) of the genus Coryphaenoides. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 104, 73-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2016.07.027

Here we consider the role of depth as a driver of evolution in a genus of deep-sea fishes. We provide a phylogeny for the genus Coryphaenoides (Gadiformes: Macrouridae) that represents the breadth of habitat use and distributions for these species. I... Read More about Depth as a driver of evolution in the deep sea: Insights from grenadiers (Gadiformes: Macrouridae) of the genus Coryphaenoides.

Population differentiation in the context of Holocene climate change for a migratory marine species, the southern elephant seal (2016)
Journal Article
Corrigan, L., Fabiani, A., Chauke, L., McMahon, C., de Bruyn, M., Bester, M., …Hoelzel, A. (2016). Population differentiation in the context of Holocene climate change for a migratory marine species, the southern elephant seal. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 29(9), 1667-1679. https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.12870

Understanding observed patterns of connectivity requires an understanding of the evolutionary processes that determine genetic structure among populations, with the most common models being associated with isolation by distance, allopatry or vicarian... Read More about Population differentiation in the context of Holocene climate change for a migratory marine species, the southern elephant seal.

Population genomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype evolution in sympatry involving both selection and drift (2014)
Journal Article
Moura, A., Kenny, J., Chaudhuri, R., Hughes, M., Welch, A., Reisinger, R., …Hoelzel, A. (2014). Population genomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype evolution in sympatry involving both selection and drift. Molecular Ecology, 23(21), 5179-5192. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.12929

The evolution of diversity in the marine ecosystem is poorly understood, given the relatively high potential for connectivity, especially for highly mobile species such as whales and dolphins. The killer whale (Orcinus orca) has a worldwide distribut... Read More about Population genomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype evolution in sympatry involving both selection and drift.

Delphinid systematics and biogeography with a focus on the current genus Lagenorhynchus: Multiple pathways for antitropical and trans-oceanic radiation (2014)
Journal Article
Banguera-Hinestroza, E., Hayano, A., Crespo, E., & Hoelzel, A. (2014). Delphinid systematics and biogeography with a focus on the current genus Lagenorhynchus: Multiple pathways for antitropical and trans-oceanic radiation. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 80, 217-230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2014.08.005

The six species currently classified within the genus Lagenorhynchus exhibit a pattern of antitropical distribution common among marine taxa. In spite of their morphological similarities they are now considered an artificial grouping, and include bot... Read More about Delphinid systematics and biogeography with a focus on the current genus Lagenorhynchus: Multiple pathways for antitropical and trans-oceanic radiation.

Phylogenomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype divergence in sympatry (2014)
Journal Article
Moura, A., Kenny, J., Chaudhuri, R., Hughes, M., Reisinger, R., de Bruyn, P., …Hoelzel, A. (2015). Phylogenomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype divergence in sympatry. Heredity, 114(1), 48-55. https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.2014.67

For many highly mobile species, the marine environment presents few obvious barriers to gene flow. Even so, there is considerable diversity within and among species, referred to by some as the ‘marine speciation paradox’. The recent and diverse radia... Read More about Phylogenomics of the killer whale indicates ecotype divergence in sympatry.

Influence of Holocene environmental change and anthropogenic impact on the diversity and distribution of roe deer (2014)
Journal Article
Baker, K., & Hoelzel, A. (2014). Influence of Holocene environmental change and anthropogenic impact on the diversity and distribution of roe deer. Heredity, 112(6), 607-615. https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.2013.142

Extant patterns of population structure and levels of diversity are a consequence of factors that vary in both space and time. Our objective in this study is to investigate a species that has responded to both natural and anthropogenic changes in way... Read More about Influence of Holocene environmental change and anthropogenic impact on the diversity and distribution of roe deer.

Rapid increase in southern elephant seal genetic diversity after a founder event (2014)
Journal Article
De Bruyn, M., Pinsky, M., Hall, B., Koch, P., Baroni, C., & Hoelzel, A. (2014). Rapid increase in southern elephant seal genetic diversity after a founder event. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 281(1779), Article 20133078. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.3078

Genetic diversity provides the raw material for populations to respond to changing environmental conditions. The evolution of diversity within populations is based on the accumulation of mutations and their retention or loss through selection and gen... Read More about Rapid increase in southern elephant seal genetic diversity after a founder event.

Killer Whale Nuclear Genome and mtDNA Reveal Widespread Population Bottleneck During the Last Glacial Maximum (2014)
Journal Article
Moura, A., Janse van Rensburg, C., Pilot, M., Tehrani, A., Best, P., Thornton, M., …Hoelzel, A. (2014). Killer Whale Nuclear Genome and mtDNA Reveal Widespread Population Bottleneck During the Last Glacial Maximum. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 31(5), 1121-1131. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msu058

Ecosystem function and resilience is determined by the interactions and independent contributions of individual species. Apex predators play a disproportionately determinant role through their influence and dependence on the dynamics of prey species.... Read More about Killer Whale Nuclear Genome and mtDNA Reveal Widespread Population Bottleneck During the Last Glacial Maximum.

Recent diversification of a marine genus (Tursiops spp.) tracks habitat preference and environmental change (2013)
Journal Article
Moura, A., Nielsen, S., Vilstrup, J., Moreno-Mayar, J., Gilbert, M., Gray, H., …Hoelzel, A. (2013). Recent diversification of a marine genus (Tursiops spp.) tracks habitat preference and environmental change. Systematic Biology, 62(6), 865-877. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/syt051

Understanding the evolution of diversity and the resulting systematics in marine systems is confounded by the lack of clear boundaries in oceanic habitats, especially for highly mobile species like marine mammals. Dolphin populations and sibling spec... Read More about Recent diversification of a marine genus (Tursiops spp.) tracks habitat preference and environmental change.

Does Presence of a Mid-Ocean Ridge Enhance Biomass and Biodiversity? (2013)
Journal Article
Priede, I. G., Bergstad, O. A., Miller, P. I., Vecchione, M., Gebruk, A., Falkenhaug, T., …Lorance, P. (2013). Does Presence of a Mid-Ocean Ridge Enhance Biomass and Biodiversity?. PLoS ONE, 8(5), Article e61550. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0061550

In contrast to generally sparse biological communities in open-ocean settings, seamounts and ridges are perceived as areas of elevated productivity and biodiversity capable of supporting commercial fisheries. We investigated the origin of this appare... Read More about Does Presence of a Mid-Ocean Ridge Enhance Biomass and Biodiversity?.

Insights into genetic diversity, parentage and group composition of Atlantic white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus acutus) in the west of Ireland based on nuclear and mitochondrial genetic markers. (2011)
Journal Article
Mirimin, L., Banguera-Hinestroza, E., Hoelzel, A., R, C., !&, T., & gan, E. (2011). Insights into genetic diversity, parentage and group composition of Atlantic white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhynchus acutus) in the west of Ireland based on nuclear and mitochondrial genetic markers. Journal of Heredity, 102(1), 79-87. https://doi.org/10.1093/jhered/esq106

Environmental factors associated with genetic and phenotypic divergence among sympatric populations of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) (2011)
Journal Article
Corrigan, L., Lucas, M., Winfield, I., & Hoelzel, A. (2011). Environmental factors associated with genetic and phenotypic divergence among sympatric populations of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus). Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 24(9), 1906-1917. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1420-9101.2011.02327.x

The mechanisms by which phenotypic and genetic divergence may occur among sympatric, conspecific populations have been widely discussed but are still not well understood. Possible mechanisms include assortative mating based on morphology or variation... Read More about Environmental factors associated with genetic and phenotypic divergence among sympatric populations of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus).

Dietary plasticity in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in response to long-term environmental change (2011)
Journal Article
Corrigan, L., Winfield, I., Hoelzel, A., & Lucas, M. (2011). Dietary plasticity in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in response to long-term environmental change. Ecology of Freshwater Fish, 20(1), 5-13. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0633.2010.00446.x

In the face of widespread environmental change impacts, there is a need to better understand mechanisms promoting flexibility and resilience of ecosystem components to such change to inform strategies for conservation. Glacial relict species are espe... Read More about Dietary plasticity in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in response to long-term environmental change.

Female philopatry in coastal basins and male dispersion across the North Atlantic in a highly mobile marine species, the sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). (2009)
Journal Article
Engelhaupt, D., Hoelzel, A., Nicholson, C., Frantzis, A., Mesnick, S., Gero, S., …Mignucci-Giannoni, A. (2009). Female philopatry in coastal basins and male dispersion across the North Atlantic in a highly mobile marine species, the sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). Molecular Ecology, 18(20), 4193-4205. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294x.2009.04355.x

Social cohesion among kin, gene flow without dispersal and the evolution of population genetic structure in the killer whale (Orcinus orca). (2009)
Journal Article
Pilot, M., Dahlheim, M., & Hoelzel, A. (2010). Social cohesion among kin, gene flow without dispersal and the evolution of population genetic structure in the killer whale (Orcinus orca). Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 23(1), 20-31. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1420-9101.2009.01887.x

In social species, breeding system and gregarious behavior are key factors influencing the evolution of large‐scale population genetic structure. The killer whale is a highly social apex predator showing genetic differentiation in sympatry between po... Read More about Social cohesion among kin, gene flow without dispersal and the evolution of population genetic structure in the killer whale (Orcinus orca)..

Rapid Response of a Marine Mammal Species to Holocene Climate and Habitat Change (2009)
Journal Article
de Bruyn, M., Hall, B., Chauke, L., Baroni, C., Koch, P., & Hoelzel, A. (2009). Rapid Response of a Marine Mammal Species to Holocene Climate and Habitat Change. PLoS Genetics, 5(7), Article e1000554. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1000554

Environmental change drives demographic and evolutionary processes that determine diversity within and among species. Tracking these processes during periods of change reveals mechanisms for the establishment of populations and provides predictive da... Read More about Rapid Response of a Marine Mammal Species to Holocene Climate and Habitat Change.

Evolution of population structure in a highly social top predator, the killer whale (2007)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A., Hey, J., Dahlheim, M., Nicholson, C., Burkanov, V., & Black, N. (2007). Evolution of population structure in a highly social top predator, the killer whale. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 24(6), 1407-1415. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msm063

Intraspecific resource partitioning and social affiliations both have the potential to structure populations, though it is rarely possible to directly assess the impact of these mechanisms on genetic diversity and population divergence. Here, we addr... Read More about Evolution of population structure in a highly social top predator, the killer whale.

Killer whales are capable of vocal learning (2006)
Journal Article
Foote, A., Griffin, R., Howitt, D., Larsson, L., Miller, P., & Hoelzel, A. (2006). Killer whales are capable of vocal learning. Biology Letters, 2(4), 509-512

Ancient genomes (2005)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A. (2005). Ancient genomes. GenomeBiology.com (London. Online), 6(12), Article 239. https://doi.org/10.1186/gb-2005-6-12-239

Ever since its invention, the polymerase chain reaction has been the method of choice for work with ancient DNA. In an application of modern genomic methods to material from the Pleistocene, a recent study has instead undertaken to clone and sequence... Read More about Ancient genomes.

Low world-wide genetic diversity in the killer whale (Orcinus orca); Implications for demographic history (2002)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A., Natoli, A., Dahlheim, M., Olavarria, C., Baird, R., & Black, N. (2002). Low world-wide genetic diversity in the killer whale (Orcinus orca); Implications for demographic history. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 269(1499), 1467-1475. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2002.2033

A low level of genetic variation in mammalian populations where the census population size is relatively large has been attributed to various factors, such as a naturally small effective population size, historical bottlenecks and social behaviour. T... Read More about Low world-wide genetic diversity in the killer whale (Orcinus orca); Implications for demographic history.

Minke Whales (2000)
Book
Hoelzel, A., & Stern, S. (2000). Minke Whales. Colin Baxter

Alpha-male paternity in elephant seals (1999)
Journal Article
Hoelzel, A., LeBoeuf, B., Reiter, J., & Campagna, C. (1999). Alpha-male paternity in elephant seals. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 46, 298-306