Mechanisms of speciation and faunal enrichment in Atlantic parrotWshes

Relationships based on mtDNA and nDNA sequences were used to assess eVects of two major geographic barriers (the >30 myo Atlantic ocean and the »11 myo Amazon–Orinoco outXow) on speciation among Atlantic parrotWshes (Sparisoma and Nicholsina). Allopatric distributions of sister taxa implicate isolating actions of both barriers in all recent speciation in these Wshes, with no clear indications that any speciation resulted from other mechanisms. Molecular clock estimates of the timing of lineage splits indicate that both barriers acted by limiting dispersal well after they formed, although the Amazon barrier also may have been a vicariance agent. Fluctuations in sealevel, climate, and ocean-current dynamics over the past »10 my likely produced marked variation in the eVectiveness of both barriers, but particularly the Amazon barrier, allowing intermittent dispersal leading to establishment and allopatric speciation. A dynamic Amazon barrier represents a major engine of West Atlantic faunal enrichment that has repeatedly facilitated bidirectional dispersal, allopatric speciation, and remixing of the Caribbean and Brazilian faunas. © 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.