Phyletic evolution of mitochondrial DNA genomes in
Wolffish (Anarhichas
spp.) vs Codfish (Gadus spp.
& relatives)
(KA Johnstone et al. 2007. Can J Zool 85, 115; MW Coulson et al. 2006. Genome 49,1115)
Three species of Wolffish (Anarhichas
spp.) are found in Newfoundland waters. Comparison of their complete
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome sequences (16,543 bp) shows that
they are only about half as closely related as different
species of Cod (Gadus spp.)
from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The two most closely related
species, Striped
and Spotted Wolffish (A. lupus
and A. minor, respectively)
are only
about twice as differentiated as trans-Pacific populations of Pacific
Cod.