One or two species of the rare Malagasy carnivoran Eupleres (Eupleridae)? New insights from molecular data

Abstract

Abstract Members of the genus Eupleres are poorly known insectivorous carnivorans belonging to the family Eupleridae (order Carnivora), which are endemic to Madagascar. Recently, using morphological characters, the two previously recognized subspecies of Eupleres goudotii were raised to the species level, with E. goudotii occurring in the humid forests of the island, largely in the east, and Eupleres major in northwestern dry deciduous forests. Using some of the few museum specimens and fresh tissue samples available for this genus, we assessed differences between these two forms based on the cytochrome b gene. The results show that individuals identified as E. major, based on a combination of morphological characters and collection locality, do not form a monophyletic group, and the level of polymorphism within the genus is not in agreement with the recognition of two species. Additional molecular data, in particular from nuclear markers, are needed to verify these results.