DNA barcoding of the fishes of the genus <i>Alburnoides</i> (Actinopterygii, Cyprinidae) from Caucasus

<p>Spirlins of the genus <i>Alburnoides</i> are widespread fishes, which taxonomy has been rapidly developing in recent years. Mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) was used as DNA barcode marker to create a reference dataset of Caucasian <i>Alburnoides</i> and to test its barcoding efficiency. All four previously known Caucasian species of <i>Alburnoides</i> were confirmed as valid species with high genetic distances to sister species as well confirmed as Caucasian endemics. <i>Alburnoides samiii,</i> previously known from Sefidroud basin (Iran), was discovered in Transcaucasia. The accuracy of species identification of Ponto-Caspian <i>Alburnoides</i> by DNA barcodes was 100%. In addition, one potentially new species within <i>A. gmelini</i> was revealed. Despite the limited ability of COI to infer phylogenetic relationships, study provided evidence that Ponto-Caspian lineage of <i>Alburnoides</i> includes significantly larger number of species from Caspian Sea basin and inland basins of Central Asia.</p