Chromosomal relationships among three species of jackrabbits ( Lepus : Leporidae) from Mexico

We studied differentially stained karyotypes of the leporids Lepus californicus, L. callotis, and L. flavigularis and described their banding patterns of euchromatin to decide whether results fit expectations of chromosomal rearrangements leading to the karyotypic evolution ancestral of the L. californicus--L. callotis--L. flavigularis lineage. Results confirmed previous findings on numbers of chromosomes (2 n 's) and fundamental numbers (FNs; except for L. californicus ). Homologous G-banding patterns allowed identification of chromosome rearrangements such as pericentric inversions and addition and deletion of euchromatin. Chromosomal rearrangements that we deduced mostly support hypotheses on karyotypic changes in the chromosomal evolution of the Lepus ancestral lineage that we examined. The karyotypic pattern coincides with patterns of geographic variation and distribution of the species examined.