Phylogeography Patterns and Population Genetics Polymorphism of Daphnia cristata Sars and D. longiremis Sars (Anomopoda: Daphniidae) in Northern Eurasia

The first data on the population genetic structure of the Daphnia cristata Sars, 1862 and D. longiremis Sars, 1862 species (Anomopoda: Daphniidae) from the water bodies of Northern Eurasia are presented. The variability of the fragment of the 12S gene of the mtDNA for these taxa belonging to subgenus Daphnia (Daphnia) O.F. Müller, 1776 (Crustacea: Cladocera) in this region is studied, and a phylogenetic analysis performed. The genealogical relationships between haplotypes of the Daphnia cristata and D. longiremis species and their geographical distribution are shown. Our new data allow us to suggest a recent rapid spatial expansion for D. cristata during the Late Pleistocene and Early–Middle Holocene periods. According to the results of the study, the distribution of D. cristata and D. longiremis species are separated in the latitudinal direction with the zone of their contact in Central Yakutia. Our results provide convincing evidence for the influence of the Ice Ages and interglacials on the formation of modern genetic diversity and the phylogeographic structure of D. cristata and D. longiremis.