The evolutionary history and genetic diversity of Kinkajous, Potos flavus (Carnivora, Procyonidae)

Jorge Salazar-Bravo, M. Oliveira-Silva, Geraldine Veron, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, Pablo Gonçalves, Alfredo Langguth, C. Silva, Cibele Bonvicino

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The genus Potos (Procyonidae) is currently recognized as a monotypic genus comprising the single species Potos flavus, the kinkajou. Kinkajous are widely distributed throughout forested habitats of tropical Central and South America, extending from eastern Brazil across central Bolivia, eastern Peru, northern Ecuador, Guianas, Suriname, Venezuela, Colombia, and then through Central America and into western Mexico. The taxonomic history of the species is complex, with seven or eight subspecies historically recognized to acknowledge the phenotypic variation among populations. In this study, the systematics and the evolutionary history of Potos flavus were investigated based on the mitochondrial gene cytochrome b, including specimens from a large range of localities, covering most of the distribution of the species, from central Middle America (Costa Rica and Panama) through South America (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Guyana, and French Guiana). Analyses of 30 Potos flavus sequences s
Original languageEnglish
JournalJournal of Mammalian Evolution
StatePublished - 2016

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