Wilson J-J, Sing K-W, Halim M R A, Ramli R, Hashim R, Sofian-Azirun M
Museum of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Museum of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Genet Mol Res. 2014 Feb 19;13(1):920-5. doi: 10.4238/2014.February.19.2.
Bats are important flagship species for biodiversity research; however, diversity in Southeast Asia is considerably underestimated in the current checklists and field guides. Incorporation of DNA barcoding into surveys has revealed numerous species-level taxa overlooked by conventional methods. Inclusion of these taxa in inventories provides a more informative record of diversity, but is problematic as these species lack formal description. We investigated how frequently documented, but undescribed, bat taxa are encountered in Peninsular Malaysia. We discuss whether a barcode library provides a means of recognizing and recording these taxa across biodiversity inventories. Tissue was sampled from bats trapped at Pasir Raja, Dungun Terengganu, Peninsular Malaysia. The DNA was extracted and the COI barcode region amplified and sequenced. We identified 9 species-level taxa within our samples, based on analysis of the DNA barcodes. Six specimens matched to four previously documented taxa considered candidate species but currently lacking formal taxonomic status. This study confirms the high diversity of bats within Peninsular Malaysia (9 species in 13 samples) and demonstrates how DNA barcoding allows for inventory and documentation of known taxa lacking formal taxonomic status.
蝙蝠是生物多样性研究中的重要旗舰物种；然而，在当前的物种名录和野外指南中，东南亚地区的蝙蝠多样性被严重低估。将DNA条形码技术纳入调查后，发现了许多传统方法所忽视的物种级分类单元。将这些分类单元纳入物种清单可提供更丰富的多样性记录，但由于这些物种缺乏正式描述，因此存在问题。我们调查了在马来西亚半岛遇到已记录但未描述的蝙蝠分类单元的频率。我们讨论了条形码文库是否提供了一种在生物多样性清单中识别和记录这些分类单元的方法。从马来西亚半岛丁加奴州登贡的巴西拉贾捕获的蝙蝠身上采集组织样本。提取DNA并扩增和测序细胞色素氧化酶亚基I（COI）条形码区域。基于对DNA条形码的分析，我们在样本中识别出9个物种级分类单元。6个标本与4个先前记录的被视为候选物种但目前缺乏正式分类地位的分类单元相匹配。这项研究证实了马来西亚半岛蝙蝠的高度多样性（13个样本中有9个物种），并展示了DNA条形码技术如何用于对缺乏正式分类地位的已知分类单元进行编目和记录。
