Mitochondrial Lineages of the Beluga Whale Delphinapterus leucas in the Russian Arctic

Abstract

The data on mtDNA sequences of the beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) from the central Eastern Arctic as well as coastal waters of the Chukchi Peninsula and different parts of the White Sea are presented and analyzed for the first time. Certain sequences found in the region form a separate phylogenetic clade. The distinctness of composition of maternal lineages found for the White Sea is noted. However, the set of sequences found in the Russian Arctic in whole cannot be characterized as region-specific.