Highly polymorphic microsatellite loci for the Gran Canarian skink (Chalcides sexlineatus) and their applicability in other Canarian Chalcides

Abstract

The scincid lizard Chalcides sexlineatus is endemic to the island of Gran Canaria, within which it shows a pronounced phylogeographical pattern. Understanding the maintenance of this pattern requires knowledge of nuclear DNA structuring. Eleven polymorphic tetranucleotide microsatellite loci were isolated from a library constructed from genomic DNA enriched for AAAG repeat sequence. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 12 to 19, and expected heterozygosities spanned from 0.738 to 0.933 (n = 30). The majority of these could be cross-amplified in other endemic Canarian Chalcides. The loci will be used to investigate gene flow between the principal mitochondrial clades within C. sexlineatus.