Phylogeography and Population Genetics in Crustacea

Recently, technological progress and the rise of DNA barcoding efforts have led to a significant increase in the availability of molecular datasets on intraspecific variability. Carcinologists and other organismal biologists, who want to use molecular tools to investigate patterns on the scale of populations, face a bewildering variety of genetic markers, analytical methods, and computer programs from which to choose. A modern overview of population genetic and phylogeographic studies, Phylogeography and Population Genetics in Crustacea offers insights to guide research on intraspecific genetic variation in crustaceans.Combining theory and case studies of current best practices, the book helps researchers select methods of analysis and interpret their results. The theoretical chapters discuss the potential of currently used and upcoming molecular markers in the context of marine non-model species. They also gather practical tips and address the effect of seldom-discussed sources of error, such as spatial and temporal variation, stochasticity, and choice of statistical parameters. Case studies of marine and limnic crustaceans from around the world highlight the importance and diversity of sources of population structure in intraspecific variation. Written by an international team of 46 leading experts, the book showcases the use and analysis of molecular markers, including mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data, coding and non-coding sequences, microsatellites, and cytogenetics. It gives researchers and students a valuable summary of current knowledge on the processes that shape genetic variability and geographic distribution patterns in space and time.

"The book is generally of a very high standard in terms of layout and presentation. ... all the authors are to be commended for communicating technically, conceptually and statistically complex subject matter clearly and simply. The treatment by Bird et al. of the most mathematically complex subject matter (the comparison of various differentiation and fixation metrics) deserves highlighting. ... Overall, this book is a valuable reference tool for researchers working on those taxa included or, perhaps, on other taxa in the geographical areas represented. The first section, in particular, would be of interest to all conducting such research in marine environments and the first two (technical) chapters should be required reading for all students concerned with population genetic or phylogeographic research. Most importantly, this book should make these fields more accessible to a wide range of carcinologists."--Gavin Gouws, Scientist, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Grahamstown, South Africa, Marine Biology Research, Vol. 9 No. 4, 2013

Christoph Held, PhD, is a senior research scientist at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany.Stefan Koenemann, PhD, is Interim Professor for Molecular Biology at the University of Siegen, Germany.Christoph D. Schubart, PhD, is an assistant professor of Evolution, Behavior, and Genetics at the University of Regensburg, Germany.