A Genetic Perspective on Cetacean Evolution

Abstract

Studies of cetacean evolution using genetics and other biomolecules have come a long way—from the use of allozymes and short sequences of mitochondrial or nuclear DNA to the assembly of full nuclear genomes and characterization of proteins and lipids. Cetacean research has also advanced from using only contemporary samples to analyzing samples dating back thousands of years, and to retrieving data from indirect environmental sources, including water or sediments. Combined, these studies have profoundly deepened our understanding of the origin of cetaceans; their adaptation and speciation processes; and of the past population change, migration, and admixture events that gave rise to the diversity of cetaceans found today.