Pericarp structure and phylogeny within Lamiaceae subfamily Nepetoideae tribe Ocimeae

The pericarp structure has been investigated in about 205 species, representing 43 out of the about 50 genera of Lamiaceae subfamily Nepetoideae tribe Ocimeae (Ocimoideae). In its basic structure, the pericarp of Ocimeae corresponds to that of other Nepetoideae. The exocarp has usually both mucilaginous and non-mucilaginous cells. Below it, there are soft cells (mesocarp), a layer of vertically arranged bone cells and a thin innermost cell layer. The differences discovered in pericarp anatomy essentially agree with the traditional subdivisions of Ocimeae (by e.g. Briquet). The subtribes Hyptidinae and Ociminae and the genus Aeollanthus (in subtribe Plectran-thinae) have, with few exceptions crystals in the bone cells. Unlike other Labiatae, Plectranthinae (except Alvesia, Isodon and Siphocranion ) has a plate-like content in the mucilaginous cell. The systematic position of the latter three genera is discussed. Because of their pericarp anatomy, Hoslundia, Fuerstia, Catoferia, Nosema, Benguellia, Octomeron and Ceratanthus are suggested to belong to Ociminae, and Neohyptis to Plectranthinae. On the basis of pericarp characters an informal division of Ociminae is suggested. Considering the distribution of stamen and pericarp characters, the genera Capitanya, Pycnostachys and Solenostemon are suggested to originate from Plectranthus. Ocimeae species which grow in arid habitats tend to produce more mucilage and to have a larger plate-like content in the mucilaginous cells than species from moist or wet habitats.     

Pericarp structure and systematic positions of five genera of Lamiaceae subg. Nepetoideae tribe Ocimeae

Pericarp structure has been investigated in five genera of Lamiaceae subg. Nepetoideae tribe Ocimeae which were omitted or poorly studied by Ryding (1992a): Hanceola, Limniboza, Skapanthus, Tetradenia and Thorncroftia . In the light of the results, the systematic position of these and some related genera are discussed. Limniboza is suggested to belong to Ocimeae subtribe Ociminae, the Acrocephalus group. Hanceola (incl. Siphocranion), Isodon, Skapanthus (which is resurrected as a genus), Tetradenia and Thorncroftia apparently do not fit into any of the three traditional subtribes (Hyptidinae, Ociminae or Plectranthinae). The three Asiatic genera, Hanceola, Isodon and Skapanthus might together form a new subtribe. Tetradenia and Thorncroftia have more isolated positions in the Ocimeae.     

Ancestral State Reconstruction Reveals Rampant Homoplasy of Diagnostic Morphological Characters in Urticaceae,Conflicting with Current Classification Schemes

Urticaceae is a family with more than 2000 species, which contains remarkable morphological diversity. It has undergone many taxonomic reorganizations, and is currently the subject of further systematic studies. To gain more resolution in systematic studies and to better understand the general patterns of character evolution in Urticaceae, based on our previous phylogeny including 169 accessions comprising 122 species across 47 Urticaceae genera, we examined 19 diagnostic characters, and analysed these employing both maximum-parsimony and maximum-likelihood approaches. Our results revealed that 16 characters exhibited multiple state changes within the family, with ten exhibiting >eight changes and three exhibiting between 28 and 40. Morphological synapomorphies were identified for many clades, but the diagnostic value of these was often limited due to reversals within the clade and/or homoplasies elsewhere. Recognition of the four clades comprising the family at subfamily level can be supported by a small number carefully chosen defining traits for each. Several non-monophyletic genera appear to be defined only by characters that are plesiomorphic within their clades, and more detailed work would be valuable to find defining traits for monophyletic clades within these. Some character evolution may be attributed to adaptive evolution in Urticaceae due to shifts in habitat or vegetation type. This study demonstrated the value of using phylogeny to trace character evolution, and determine the relative importance of morphological traits for classification.     

Galatheoidea are not monophyletic - molecular and morphological phylogeny of the squat lobsters (Decapoda: Anomura) with recognition of a new superfamily

The monophyletic status of the squat lobster superfamily Galatheoidea has come under increasing doubt by studies using evidence as diverse as larval and adult somatic morphology, sperm ultrastructure, and molecular data. Here we synthesize phylogenetic data from these diverse strands, with the addition of new molecular and morphological data to examine the phylogeny of the squat lobsters and assess the status of the Galatheoidea. A total of 64 species from 16 of the 17 currently recognised anomuran families are included. Results support previous work pointing towards polyphyly in the superfamily Galatheoidea and Paguroidea, specifically, suggesting independent origins of the Galatheidae+Porcellanidae and the Chirostylidae+Kiwaidae. Morphological characters are selected that support clades resolved in the combined analysis and the taxonomic status of Galatheoidea sensu lato is revised. Results indicate that Chirostylidae are more closely related to an assemblage including Aegloidea, Lomisoidea and Paguroidea than to the remaining Galatheoidea and are referred to the superfamily Chirostyloidea to include the Chirostylidae and Kiwaidae. A considerable amount of research highlighting morphological differences supporting this split is discussed. The Galatheoidea sensu stricto is restricted to the families Galatheidae and Porcellanidae, and diagnoses for both Chirostyloidea and Galatheoidea are provided. Present results highlight the need for a detailed revision of a number of taxa, challenge some currently used morphological synapomorphies, and emphasise the need for integrated studies with wide taxon sampling and multiple data sources to resolve complex phylogenetic questions.     

Major clades of parmelioid lichens (Parmeliaceae, Ascomycota) and the evolution of their morphological and chemical diversity

Parmelioid lichens comprise about 1500 species and have a worldwide distribution. Numerous species are widely distributed and well known, including important bioindicators for atmospheric pollution. The phylogeny and classification of parmelioid lichens has been a matter of debate for several decades. Previous studies using molecular data have helped to establish hypotheses of the phylogeny of certain clades within this group. In this study, we infer the phylogeny of major clades of parmelioid lichens using DNA sequence data from two nuclear loci and one mitochondrial locus from 145 specimens (117 species) that represent the morphological and chemical diversity in these taxa. Parmelioid lichens are not monophyletic; however, a core group is strongly supported as monophyletic, excluding Arctoparmelia and Melanelia s. str., and including Parmeliopsis and Parmelaria. Within this group, seven well-supported clades are found, but the relationships among them remain unresolved. Stochastic mapping on a MC/MCMC tree sampling was employed to infer the evolution of two morphological and two chemical traits believed to be important for the evolutionary success of these lichens, and have also been used as major characters for classification. The results suggest that these characters have been gained and lost multiple times during the diversification of parmelioid lichens.     

Combined phylogeny of ray‐finned fishes (Actinopterygii) and the use of morphological characters in large‐scale analyses

This study evaluates the phylogeny of ray‐finned fishes (Actinopterygii) combining most available information (44 markers from nuclear and mitochondrial DNA and 274 morphological characters). The molecular partition of the dataset was produced through a pipeline (GB‐to‐TNT) that allows the fast building of large matrices from GenBank format. The analysed dataset has 8104 species, including representatives of all orders and 95% of the 475 families of Actinopterygii, making it the most diverse phylogenetic dataset analysed to date for this clade of fishes. Analysed morphological characters are features historically considered diagnostic for families or orders, which can be unequivocally coded from the literature. Analyses are by parsimony under several weighting schemes. General results agree with previous classifications, especially for groups with better gene sampling and those long thought (from morphological evidence) to be monophyletic. Many clades have low support and some orders are not recovered as monophyletic. Additional data and synthetic studies of homology are needed to obtain synapomorphies and diagnoses for most clades.     

Molecular phylogeny of the moonseed family (Menispermaceae): implications for morphological diversification

We used the chloroplast gene ndhF to reconstruct the phylogeny of the moonseed family (Menispermaceae), a morphologically diverse and poorly known cosmopolitan family of dioecious, primarily climbing plants. This study includes a worldwide sample of DNA sequences for 88 species representing 49 of the 70 genera of all eight traditionally recognized tribes. Phylogenetic relationships were estimated, and the Shimodaira-Hasegawa test was used to compare the likelihood of alternative phylogenetic hypotheses and to evaluate the monophyly of tribes currently in use. The monospecific Indo-Malesian Tinomiscium is sister to the remaining members of the family, within which are two major clades. Within these two clades, well-supported clades correspond to four of the eight traditionally recognized tribes, while others, such as Menispermeae, are polyphyletic. Mapping of major morphological characters on the phylogeny indicates that the crescent-shaped seed is derived from a straight seed, the tree habit has arisen multiple times, endosperm has been lost many times, but unicarpellate flowers evolved only once. Morphological synapomorphies for Menispermaceae include the presence of a condyle, a large embryo, and druplets. The phylogeny provides for the first time a detailed molecular-based assessment of relationships in Menispermaceae and clarifies our understanding of morphological diversification within the family.     

Phylogenetic relationships in Disa based on non-coding trnL-trnF chloroplast sequences: evidence of numerous repeat regions

Sequence data from the intron and spacer of the trnL-F chloroplast region elucidate the phylogenetic relationships of the tribe Diseae (Orchidoideae: Orchidaceae). Within Diseae, 41 species of Disa, two of Brownleea, three of Satyrium, and two of Corycium were included, with five species of Habenaria sensu lato (Orchideae) and one epidendroid as outgroups. The sequences revealed substitutions and considerable length variation, due mainly to the presence of repeat motifs. Phylogenetic analysis using parsimony revealed five distinct clades. The branching order of the five weakly supported the paraphyly of Diseae, with the successive divergence of Brownleea, Corycium, Habenaria, Satyrium, and Disa. Within the monophyletic Disa, three main groupings appeared, two strongly supported clades representing sect. Racemosae and sect. Coryphaea and the third grouping containing several clades currently grouped into sections based on morphological phylogenies. Some discrepancies between the molecular phylogeny and the phylogeny based on morphological characters may require reevaluation of some of the morphological characters. The presence of different numbers of repeat motifs, both among different taxa and within taxa, indicates that these characters may be phylogenetically informative at the population level.     

Higher‐level phylogeny of diving beetles (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) based on larval characters

A comprehensive higher‐level phylogeny of diving beetles (Dytiscidae) based on larval characters is presented. Larval morphology and chaetotaxy of a broad range of genera and species was studied, covering all currently recognized subfamilies and tribes except for the small and geographically restricted Hydrodytinae, where the larva is unknown. The results suggest several significant conclusions with respect to the systematics of Dytiscidae including the following: monophyly of all currently recognized subfamilies, although Dytiscinae when considered in a broad context is rendered paraphyletic by Cybistrinae; currently recognized tribes are monophyletic except for Agabini, Hydroporini and Laccornellini; inter‐subfamily and inter‐tribe relationships generally show weak support, except for a few well supported clades; three distinct clades are recognized within Dytiscinae [Dytiscini sensu lato (i.e. including the genera Dytiscus Linnaeus and Hyderodes Hope), Hydaticini sensu lato, and Cybistrini]; and recognition of Pachydrini as a distinct tribe. Other less robust results include: Methlini sister to the rest of Hydroporinae; relative basal position of Laccornini, Hydrovatini and Laccornellini within Hydroporinae; close relationship of Agabinae and Copelatinae; Matinae nested deep within Dytiscidae, as sister to a large clade including Colymbetinae, Coptotominae, Lancetinae and Dytiscinae sensu lato; the sister‐group relationship of Agabetini and Laccophilini is confirmed. The results presented here are discussed and compared with previous phylogenetic hypotheses based on different datasets, and the evolution of some significant morphological features is discussed in light of the proposed phylogeny. All suprageneric taxa are diagnosed, including illustrations of all relevant synapomorphies, and a key to separate subfamilies and tribes is presented, both in traditional (paper) format and as an online Lucid interactive identification key.     

An integrative approach to the evolution of shrimps of the genus Palaemon (Decapoda,Palaemonidae)

Shrimps of the genus Palaemon Weber, 1795 comprise of 86 species with a wide morphological and ecological variability along the tropical and temperate regions. Studies based on molecular data have indicated that despite a recent taxonomic rearrangement, it may remain not monophyletic. On the other hand, cladistic, morphological analyses have suggested the presence of synapomorphies, implying a natural status for the genus. In this work, a broad taxonomic and molecular sampling is applied to verify whether Palaemon is a monophyletic taxon and, based on the recovered phylogeny, identify geographical and morphological patterns related to the lineages. Partial sequences of 16S rRNA, histone H3 and 18S rRNA from 60 species of Palaemon and 15 species from other genera of Palaemonidae were analysed. In addition, previously used characters as well as novel diagnostic characters were scrutinized. The present phylogeny indicates that the species of Palaemon fall into three distinct lineages and that the colonization of America and Europe likely occurred multiple times. Morphological characters allow for the identification of at least four monophyletic groups in Palaemon; two of which are monospecific at the moment. Based on the present results, it may become necessary to establish two new genera (to accommodate Palaemon concinnus and Palaemon mercedae, respectively), as well as re‐erect the genus Alaocaris Holthuis, 1949 for Palaemon antrorum, potentially including a further six American species.     

Evolutionary diversification of spiny rats (genus Trinomys, Rodentia: Echimyidae) in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil

Phylogenetic and phylogeographic relationships within and among species of the Atlantic Forest spiny rat Trinomys (family Echimyidae) were examined using cytochrome b sequence data. Levels of sequence divergence among species of Trinomys are as high as those found among taxa of echimyids that are recognized as different genera. Trinomys contains three distinct monophyletic clades that show a striking concordance with vegetational distribution. Haplotypes of clade 1 are distributed along the coastal margins of southeastern Brazil, following the moist tropical forest. Members of clade 2 are found in the semi-deciduous tropical forest. T. albispinus represents clade 3 and is found in a more xeric vegetation. Estimates of divergence times separating the three clades are very deep and range from 1.6 to 7.4 millions of years, predating the climatic fluctuations of the Pleistocene. Therefore, the proposed Late Pleistocene refugia in the Atlantic Forest cannot account for the divergence of the clades of Trinomys , but most likely shaped the modern distribution of species. The current taxonomy of this group does not reflect the diversity and phylogenetic relationships of the named species. However, morphological characters are congruent with the phylogeny uncovered by the molecular data. An extensive taxonomic rearrangement is suggested, reflecting phylogenetic relationships of monophyletic entities within the genus Trinomys , degree of sequence differences, and morphological diagnosability.     

Testing the monophyly of the New Zealand and Australian endemic family Conoesucidae Ross based on combined molecular and morphological data (Insecta: Trichoptera: Sericostomatoidea)

Conoesucidae (Trichoptera, Insecta) are restricted to SE Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand. The family includes 42 described species in 12 genera, and each genus is endemic to either New Zealand or Australia. Although monophyly has been previously assumed, no morphological characters have been proposed to represent synapomorphies for the group. We collected molecular data from two mitochondrial genes (16S and cytochrome oxidase I), one nuclear gene (elongation factor 1-α) (2237–2277 bp in total), and 12 morphological characters to produce the first phylogeny of the family. We combined the molecular and morphological characters and performed both a maximum parsimony analysis and a Bayesian analysis to test the monophyly of the family, and to hypothesize the phylogeny among its genera. The parsimony analysis revealed a single most parsimonious tree with Conoesucidae being a monophyletic taxon and sistergroup to the Calocidae. The Bayesian inference produced a distribution of trees, the consensus of which is supported with posterior probabilities of 100% for 15 out of 22 possible ingroup clades including the most basal branch of the family, indicating strong support for a monophyletic Conoesucidae. The most parsimonious tree and the tree from the Bayesian analysis were identical except that the ingroup genus Pycnocentria changed position by jumping to a neighbouring clade. Based on the assumption that the ancestral conoesucid species was present on both New Zealand and Australia, a biogeographical analysis using the dispersal-vicariance criteria demonstrated that one or two (depending on which of the two phylogenetic reconstructions were applied) sympatric speciation events took place on New Zealand prior to a single, late dispersal from New Zealand to Australia.     

Character evolution in Hydrozoa (phylum Cnidaria)

The diversity of hydrozoan life cycles, as manifested in the wide range of polyp, colony, and medusa morphologies, has been appreciated for centuries. Unraveling the complex history of characters involved in this diversity is critical for understanding the processes driving hydrozoan evolution. In this study, we use a phylogenetic approach to investigate the evolution of morphological characters in Hydrozoa. A molecular phylogeny is reconstructed using ribosomal DNA sequence data. Several characters involving polyp, colony, and medusa morphology are coded in the terminal taxa. These characters are mapped onto the phylogeny and then the ancestral character states are reconstructed. This study confirms the complex evolutionary history of hydrozoan morphological characters. Many of the characters involving polyp, colony, and medusa morphology appear as synapomorphies for major hydrozoan clades, yet homoplasy is commonplace.     

A phylogeny of ranid frogs (Anura: Ranoidea: Ranidae), based on a simultaneous analysis of morphological and molecular data

During the last two decades, major taxonomic rearrangements were instituted in the anuran family Ranidae. Most of these changes were not based on phylogenetic analysis, and many are controversial. Addressing the phylogeny of Ranidae requires broader taxon sampling within the superfamily Ranoidea, the phylogenetic relationships and higher classification of which are also in a state of flux. No comprehensive attempt has yet been made to reconstruct ranid phylogeny using both morphological and molecular data. In the present contribution, data from 178 organismal characters were collated for 74 exemplar species representing the families Arthroleptidae, Hemisotidae, Hyperoliidae, Mantellidae Microhylidae, Petropedetidae, Rhacophoridae, Sooglossidae, and most subfamilies of Ranidae. These were combined with ～1 kb of DNA sequence from the mitochondrial 12S rDNA and 16S rDNA gene regions in a simultaneous parsimony analysis with direct optimization. Results support the classification of Hemisus with the brevicipitine microhylids, confirm that Arthroleptidae (and its two component subfamilies Astylosterninae and Arthroleptinae) are monophyletic, and advocate the recognition of Leptopelidae. Monophyly of Ranidae is compromised by recognition of Petropedetidae, Rhacophoridae and Mantellidae, which should be recognized as subfamilies of Ranidae at present. Furthermore, Petropedetidae was found to be grossly paraphyletic, comprising three clades which are all considered separate subfamilies of Ranidae, i.e., Petropedetinae, Phrynobatrachinae and Cacosterninae. Three well defined subfamilies of Ranidae were consistently retrieved as monophyletic in a sensitivity analysis, i.e., Tomopterninae, Ptychadeninae and Pyxicephalinae. However, Ptychadeninae and Pyxicephalinae were embedded in Raninae and Dicroglossinae, respectively. Ceratobatrachinae is removed from Dicroglossinae. Dicroglossinae is synonymized with Pyxicephalinae. A new subfamily Strongylopinae is proposed. Raninae should be conservatively treated as a “metataxon” (sensu Ford and Cannatella, 1993 ) until such time as it is fully revised. Tomopterninae is removed from synonymy with Cacosterninae. Morphological synapomorphies are reported for major monophyletic clades retrieved in the simultaneous analysis with equal weights. The present study found that many Old World clades appear to contain both African and Asian taxa, contrary to the findings of some recent biogeographical analyses. This study demonstrates the value of broad taxonomic sampling in ranid phylogeny, and highlights the immense contribution that can be made from detailed morphological data. © The Willi Hennig Society 2005.     

Phylogenetic analysis of the Camaenidae (Mollusca: Stylommatophora) with special emphasis on the American taxa

The monophyly of the land snail family Camaenidae has been in doubt due to a disjunct bihemispheric distributional pattern and to the lack of morphological synapomorphies. A cladistic analysis is presented using an ingroup composed of representatives of the three subfamilies distributed in Australia and 52 other species with American distribution. Bradybaenidae, Helicidae and Helminthoglyptidae were used as outgroups. Fifty morphological characters were treated as unordered and analysed using Pee-Wee ver. 2.9, a program for parsimony analysis using implied weights. The results of the analysis support Camaenidae as a monophyletic family (synapomorphies: oval genital orifice, absence of penial sheath). Two of the three Australasian subfamilies, Sinumeloninae and Camaeninae, are monophyletic in the strict consensus tree. The American taxa are classified in eight genera and arranged into two main clades. Caracolus is proposed as the sister group of the American Continental Camaenidae. The genus Solaropsis , previously excluded from this family by different authors, is reassigned to Camaenidae. Shell characters proved to be phylogenetically informative in defining Pleurodonte , Caracolus , Solaropsis , Isomeria and Labyrinthus . © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2003, 138, 449–476.     

Phylogeny of the genus Peperomia (Piperaceae) inferred from the trnK/matK region (cpDNA)

The genus Peperomia is one of the largest genera of basal angiosperms, comprising about 1500-1700 pantropically distributed species. The currently accepted infrageneric classification divides Peperomia into nine subgenera and seven sections. This classification is based on some 200 species, primarily using fruit morphology. The monophyly of these infrageneric taxa has never been tested and molecular phylogenetic studies of a representative sampling within Peperomia do not exist. This paper provides the first molecular phylogeny for the genus Peperomia. Monophyletic clades within Peperomia are identified and previously used morphological characters are critically reviewed. We show that the importance of some morphological characters has been overestimated and that some of these characters presumably have evolved several times independently. Only one previously described subgenus has been confirmed to be monophyletic.     

Molecular and morphological phylogeny of Diplazontinae (Hymenoptera,Ichneumonidae)

Klopfstein, S., Quicke, D. L. J., Kropf, C. & Frick, H. (2011) Molecular and morphological phylogeny of Diplazontinae (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae). —Zoologica Scripta, 40, 379–402. Parasitoid wasps are among the most species rich and at the same time most understudied of all metazoan taxa. To understand their diversification and test hypotheses about their evolution, we need robust phylogenetic hypotheses. Here, we reconstruct the phylogeny of the subfamily Diplazontinae using four genes and 66 morphological characters both in separate analyses and in a total evidence approach. The resulting phylogeny is highly resolved, with most clades supported by multiple independent data partitions. It contains three highly supported genus groups, for which we suggest morphological and behavioural synapomorphies. The placement of some of the genera, especially Xestopelta Dasch, is unexpected, but also supported by morphology. Most of the genera are retrieved as monophyletic, with the exception of the morphologically diverse genus Syrphoctonus Förster. We split this genus into three genera, including Fossatyloides gen. n., to restore the phylogeny–classification link. Conflict between the morphological and the molecular topology was mostly resolved in favour of the molecular partition in the total evidence approach. We discuss reasons for this finding, and suggest strategies for future taxon and character sampling in Diplazontinae.     

Molecular phylogenetics of the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae): taxonomy and biogeography of a global coral reef fish family

Marine butterflyfishes (10 genera, 114 species) are conspicuously beautiful and abundant animals found on coral reefs worldwide, and are well studied due to their ecological importance and commercial value. Several phylogenies based on morphological and molecular data exist, yet a well-supported molecular phylogeny at the species level for a wide range of taxa remains to be resolved. Here we present a molecular phylogeny of the butterflyfishes, including representatives of all genera (except Parachaetodon) and at least one representative of all commonly cited subgenera of Chaetodon (except Roa sensuBlum, 1988). Genetic data were collected for 71 ingroup and 13 outgroup taxa, using two nuclear and three mitochondrial genes that total 3332 nucleotides. Bayesian inference, parsimony, and maximum likelihood methods produced a well-supported phylogeny with strong support for a monophyletic Chaetodontidae. The Chaetodon subgenera Exornator and Chaetodon were found to be polyphyletic, and the genus Amphichaetodon was not the basal sister group to the rest of the family as had been previously proposed. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of data from 5 genes resolved some clades in agreement with previous phylogenetic studies, however the topology of relationships among major butterflyfish groups differed significantly from previous hypotheses. The analysis recovered a clade containing Amphichaetodon, Coradion, Chelmonops, Chelmon, Forcipiger, Hemitaurichthys, Johnrandallia, and Heniochus. Prognathodes was resolved as the sister to all Chaetodon, as in previous hypotheses, although the topology of subgeneric clades differed significantly from hypotheses based on morphology. We use the species-level phylogeny for the butterflyfishes to resolve long-standing questions regarding the use of subgenera in Chaetodon, to reconstruct molecular rates and estimated dates of diversification of major butterflyfish clades, and to examine global biogeographic patterns.     

Signal through the noise? Phylogeny of the Tachinidae (Diptera) as inferred from morphological evidence

The oestroid family Tachinidae represents one of the most diverse lineages of insect parasitoids. Despite their broad distribution, diversity and important role as biological control agents, the phylogeny of this family remains poorly known. Here, we review the history of tachinid systematics and present the first quantitative phylogenetic analysis of the family based on morphological data. Cladistic analyses were conducted using 135 morphological characters from 492 species belonging to 180 tachinid genera, including the four currently recognized subfamilies (Dexiinae, Exoristinae, Phasiinae, Tachininae) and all major tribes. We used characters of eggs, first‐instar larvae and adults of both sexes. We examined the effects of implied weighting by reanalysing the data with varying concavity factors. Our analysis generally supports the subfamily groupings Dexiinae + Phasiinae and Tachininae + Exoristinae, with only the Exoristinae and the Phasiinae reconstructed as monophyletic assemblages under a wide range of weighting schemes. Under these conditions, the Dexiinae, which were previously considered a well‐established monophyletic assemblage, are reconstructed as being paraphyletic with respect to the Phasiinae. The Tachininae are reconstructed as a paraphyletic grade from which the monophyletic Exoristinae arose. The Exoristinae are reconstructed as a monophyletic lineage, but phylogenetic relationships within the subfamily are largely unresolved. We further explored the evolution of oviposition strategy and found that the oviparous groups are nested within ovolarviparous assemblages, suggesting that ovipary may have evolved several times independently from ovolarviparous ancestors. This counterintuitive pattern is a novel hypothesis suggested by the results of this analysis. Finally, two major patterns emerge when considering host associations across our phylogeny under equal weights: (i) although more than 60% of tachinids are parasitoids of Lepidoptera larvae, none of the basal clades is unambiguously associated with Lepidoptera as a primitive condition, suggesting that tachinids were slow to colonize these hosts, but then radiated extensively on them; and (ii) there is general agreement between host use and monophyly of the major lineages.     

First molecular phylogeny of the pantropical genus Dalbergia: implications for infrageneric circumscription and biogeography

The genus Dalbergia with c. 250 species has a pantropical distribution. In spite of the high economic and ecological value of the genus, it has not yet been the focus of a species level phylogenetic study. We utilized ITS nuclear sequence data and included 64 Dalbergia species representative of its entire geographic range to provide a first phylogenetic framework of the genus to evaluate previous infrageneric classifications based on morphological data. The phylogenetic analyses performed suggest that Dalbergia is monophyletic and that it probably originated in the New World. Several clades corresponding to sections of these previous classifications are revealed. Taking into account that there is not a complete correlation between geography and phylogeny, and the estimation that the Dalbergia stem and crown clades are 40.4–43.3 mya and 3.8–12.7 mya, respectively, it is plausible that several long distance dispersal events underlie the pantropical distribution of the genus.