It has been proposed that the elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, is genetically separated into two distinct provinces in the Caribbean, an Eastern and a Western population admixing in western Puerto Rico and around the Mona Passage. In this study, the genetic structure of A. palmata sampled at 11 Puerto Rican localities and localities from Curaçao, the Bahamas and Guadeloupe were examined. Analyses using five microsatellite markers showed that 75% of sampled colonies had unique genotypes, the rest being clone mates. Genetic diversity among genets was high (HE = 0.761) and consistent across localities (0.685 to 0.844). FST ranged from -0.011 to 0.047 supporting low but significant genetic differentiation between localities within the previously reported Eastern and Western genetic provinces. Plots of genetic per geographic distances and significant Mantel tests supported isolation-by-distance (IBD) within Puerto Rico. Analysis with the software Structure favored a scenario with weak differentiation between two populations, assigning eastern Puerto Rican locations (Fajardo and Culebra), Guadeloupe and Curaçao to the Caribbean Eastern population and western Puerto Rican locations (west of Vega Baja and Ponce), Mona and the Bahamas to the Caribbean Western population. Vieques and San Juan area harbored admixed profiles. Standardized FSTs per 1,000 km unit further supported higher differentiation between localities belonging to different Structure populations, with IBD being stronger within Puerto Rico than on larger regional scales. This stronger genetic transition seems to separate localities between putative Eastern and Western provinces in the eastern Puerto Rican region, not around the Mona Passage.

中文翻译：

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波多黎各大陆架上受威胁的加勒比麋鹿角珊瑚（Acropora palmata）的遗传海景

有人提出，鹿角珊瑚 Acropora palmata 在遗传上分为加勒比地区的两个不同省份，东部和西部种群混合在波多黎各西部和莫纳海峡周围。在这项研究中，研究了在波多黎各 11 个地区以及库拉索、巴哈马和瓜德罗普岛采样的 A. palmata 的遗传结构。使用五个微卫星标记进行的分析表明，75% 的采样菌落具有独特的基因型，其余的是克隆配偶。基因间的遗传多样性很高（HE = 0.761）并且在不同地区一致（0.685 到 0.844）。FST 范围从 -0.011 到 0.047，支持先前报告的东部和西部遗传省份内的地区之间的低但显着的遗传差异。每个地理距离的遗传图和重要的 Mantel 测试支持波多黎各内的按距离隔离 (IBD)。使用软件 Structure 进行的分析倾向于两个种群之间差异较弱的情况，将波多黎各东部地区（法哈多和库莱布拉岛）、瓜德罗普岛和库拉索岛分配给加勒比东部人口和波多黎各西部地区（Vega Baja 和庞塞西部）、Mona 和巴哈马到加勒比西部人口。别克斯和圣胡安地区有混合的概况。每 1,000 公里单位的标准化 FST 进一步支持属于不同结构种群的地区之间的更高差异，波多黎各内的 IBD 比更大的区域范围内更强。