Preliminary molecular analysis of Pelecanoides georgicus (Procellariiformes: Pelecanoididae) on Whenua Hou (Codfish Island): Implications for its taxonomic status

Abstract

Using sequences from the central and 3′ regions of the mitchondrial small subunit (12S) ri‐bosomal RNA gene for six procellariiform species, this study confirms that the population of Pelecanoides georgicus on Whenua Hou (Codfish Island), New Zealand, is most closely related to P. georgicus from the southern Indian Ocean. The level of variation between sequences for this conserved gene suggests that the isolated Whenua Hou P. georgicus population split off from populations in the Indian Ocean several hundred thousand years ago. Although P. georgicus is globally numerous, the Whenua Hou population is endangered. As our preliminary sequence data suggest that the Whenua Hou population may have diverged from its parent population, it may deserve recognition in its own right. © 2000 Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.