Phylogenetic relationship among pigeon species from Palearctic region and Macaronesian islands

The evolutionary relationships among Columbidae species from the Palearctic Region and Macaronesian archipelagos was examined using mitochondrial control region sequences. Morphological and behavioural studies have indicated the close relationships between the Wood Pigeon (Columba palumbus) from European mainland and the insular endemic pigeons, Madeira Laurel Pigeon (C. trocaz) from Madeira and Bolle’s Laurel Pigeon (C. bollii) and White-tailed Laurel Pigeon (C. junoniae) from the Canary Islands. In the present molecular study, we also included the Stock Pigeon (C. oenas), the Rock Pigeon (C. livia) and the Azorean endemic subspecies of Wood Pigeon C. palumbus azorica, in the phylogenetic analysis. Preliminary results suggest that White-tailed Laurel Pigeon is basal, showing mitochondrial sequences divergent to the rest of pigeons studied. Madeira Laurel Pigeon and Bolle’s Laurel Pigeon cluster with widely distributed Palearctic species. This work constitutes a genetic approach to the origin of threatened endemic pigeons that inhabit in the relic laurel forests of these Atlantic islands.