Phylogenetic analysis of the genus Cheilosia (Diptera, Syrphidae) using mitochondrial COI sequence data

The genus Cheilosia is one of the most diverse and speciose genera of Syrphidae (Diptera). The phylogenetic relationships of the hoverfly genus Cheilosia was investigated for the first time using molecular data. The mitochondrial protein-coding gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) was chosen for sequencing; 1341 characters were obtained for 24 ingroup taxa and these were analyzed with parsimony. The monophyly of the genus Cheilosia was well supported. Current taxonomic division of Cheilosia into two subgenera (sg. Nigrocheilosia and sg. Neocheilosia) and most nonformalized species groups based on morphology were supported by the monophyletic groups identified in the molecular analysis. The phylogenetic informativeness of COI in resolving the subtribal relationships within the tribe Cheilosiini remains ambiguous.     

Is the mega-diverse genus Ocyptamus (Diptera, Syrphidae) monophyletic? Evidence from molecular characters including the secondary structure of 28S rRNA

Phylogenetic relationships between two New World Syrphinae taxa (Diptera, Syrphidae), i.e. the highly diverse genus Ocyptamus and the large genus Toxomerus, were analysed based on molecular characters. The monophyly of both taxa was tested and the taxonomic status of included subgenera and species groups was examined. Toxomerus constitutes the monogeneric tribe Toxomerini with more than 140 described species, while Ocyptamus (tribe Syrphini) is a very diverse genus (over 300 spp.) with multiple recognised subgenera and species groups. Sequence data from three gene regions were used: the mitochondrial protein-coding gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and the nuclear 28S and 18S ribosomal RNA genes. The secondary structure of two expansion segments (D2, D3) of the ribosomal 28S RNA gene is presented for the family Syrphidae and used for the first time in a multiple sequence alignment. Molecular data were analysed using parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Toxomerus was always recovered as monophyletic within Ocyptamus, and relationships to other New World taxa such as Salpingogaster (Eosalpingogaster) were well-supported. Only the subgenera and species groups of Ocyptamus were consistently recovered as monophyletic lineages, thus the apparent non-monophyly of Ocyptamus demands reclassification of this clade.     

Phylogeny of the plant bug subfamily Mirinae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Cimicomorpha: Miridae) based on total evidence analysis

The first comprehensive phylogenetic analyses of the most diverse subfamily of plant bugs, Mirinae, is presented in this study, for 110 representative taxa based on total evidence analysis. A total of 85 morphological characters and 3898 bp of mitochondrial (16S, COI) and nuclear (18S, 28S) sequences were analysed for each partitioned and combined dataset based on parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Major results obtained in this study include monophyly of the tribe Mecistoscelini. The largest tribe, Mirini, was recovered as polyphyletic, and Stenodemini was recovered as paraphyletic. The clade of Stenodemini + Mecistoscelini is the sister group of the remaining Mirinae. The monophyly of two complexes composed of superficially similar genera were tested; the Lygus complex was recovered as nonmonophyletic, and the Adelphocoris–Creontiades–Megacoelum complex was confirmed to be monophyletic. The generic relationships of the main clades within each tribe based on the phylogeny, as well as their supported morphological characters, are discussed.     

First phylogeny of predatory flower flies (Diptera, Syrphidae, Syrphinae) using mitochondrial COI and nuclear 28S rRNA genes: conflict and congruence with the current tribal classification

The family Syrphidae (Diptera) is traditionally divided into three subfamilies. The aim of this study was to address the monophyly of the tribes within the subfamily Syrphinae (virtually all with predaceous habits), as well as the phylogenetic placement of particular genera using molecular characters. Sequence data from the mitochondrial protein-coding gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I ( COI ) and the nuclear 28S ribosomal RNA gene of 98 Syrphinae taxa were analyzed using optimization alignment to explore phylogenetic relationships among included taxa. Volucella pellucens was used as outgroup, and representatives of the tribe Pipizini (Eristalinae), with similar larval feeding mode, were also included. Congruence of our results with current tribal classification of Syrphinae is discussed. Our results include the tribe Toxomerini resolved as monophyletic but placed in a clade with genera Ocyptamus and Eosalpingogaster . Some genera traditionally placed into Syrphini were resolved outside of this tribe, as the sister groups to other tribes or genera. The tribe Bacchini was resolved into several different clades. We recovered Paragini as a monophyletic group, and sister group of the genus Allobaccha . The present results highlight the need of a reclassification of Syrphinae.
© The Willi Hennig Society 2008.     

Phylogeny of the tribe Abrotrichini (Cricetidae,Sigmodontinae): integrating morphological and molecular evidence into a new classification

The tribe Abrotrichini (five genera and 14 living species) is a small clade within the speciose subfamily Sigmodontinae (Rodentia, Cricetidae), representing one of the extant successful radiations of mammals at southern high latitudes of the Neotropics. Its distribution is mostly Andean, reaching its greatest diversity in southern Argentina and Chile. We evaluate the phylogenetic relationships within this tribe through parsimony and Bayesian approaches based on 99 morphological characters (including 19 integumental characters, 38 skull characters, 31 dental characters, three postcranial skeletal characters, seven from the male accessory glands and phallus and one from the digestive system) and six molecular markers (one mitochondrial and five nuclear). We include representatives of all, except one, of the currently recognized species of living Abrotrichini plus one fossil form. Based on total evidence, we recovered a primary division between the genus Abrothrix and a group including the long‐clawed Abrotrichini, Chelemys, Geoxus, Notiomys and Pearsonomys. Both clades are recognized and named here as subtribes. The large degree of morphological variation observed within Abrothrix suggests that species in the genus fall into four groups, which we recognize as subgenera. In addition, the two known species of Chelemys do not form a monophyletic group, and Geoxus was recovered as paraphyletic with respect to Pearsonomys. To reconcile classification and phylogenetics, we describe a new genus for Chelemys macronyx and include Pearsonomys as a junior synonym of Geoxus. Our results highlight the importance of both morphology and molecules in resolving the phylogenetic relationships within this tribe. Based on biogeographical analyses, we hypothesize that Abrotrichini originated in south‐western South America by vicariance and then diversified mostly by successive dispersal events.     

Molecular phylogeny of the marine littoral genus Cafius (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae) and implications for classification

Jeon, M.‐J., Song, J.‐H. & Ahn, K.‐J. (2012). Molecular phylogeny of the marine littoral genus Cafius (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae) and implications for classification. —Zoologica Scripta, 41, 150–159. A phylogenetic analysis of the marine littoral genus Cafius Stephens is presented based on molecular characters. The data set comprised partial mitochondrial COI (910 bp), COII (369 bp), 12S rDNA (351–354 bp), 16S rDNA (505–509 bp) and nearly complete sequences of 18S rDNA (1814–1830 bp) for 37 species. Twenty‐seven Cafius species, representing five of six subgenera, two Remus Holme species, three Phucobius Sharp species, monotypic Thinocafius Steel and four outgroups were included. The sequences were analysed simultaneously by parsimony analysis in Tree Analysis Using New Technology (TNT) with traditional manual alignment, direct optimization (DO) in the program POY4 under a variety of gap costs and partitioned Bayesian analysis for the combined data. The genus Cafius and nearly all of its subgenera were not supported as being monophyletic. Instead, all analyses (parsimony trees, DO tree under equal weighting and Bayesian tree) showed monophyly of Cafius + Phucobius + Remus + Thinocafius (clade Z) and all seven nested clades (A–G). However, the phylogenetic relationships among clades A–G differed among the analyses. The genus Phucobius was recovered as a monophyletic group within Cafius. The genus Remus was not monophyletic but formed a clade with C. rufescens Sharp and C. rufifrons Bierig within Cafius. The genus Thinocafius formed a clade with C. caviceps Broun, C. litoreus (Broun) and C. quadriimpressus (White) within Cafius. We propose new concepts for the genus Cafius and its related genera, and the seven nested clades.     

Phylogeny in Echinocereus (Cactaceae) based on combined morphological and molecular evidence: taxonomic implications

Echinocereus is a morphologically diverse genus that includes 64 species grouped into eight taxonomic sections based on morphological traits. In previous molecular phylogenetic analyses, the relationships amongst Echinocereus species were not entirely revealed and useful characters to recognize clades were not provided. The inclusion of several sources of evidence in a phylogenetic analysis is likely to produce more supported hypotheses. Therefore, we performed a combined phylogenetic analysis with a set of 44 morphological characters and six chloroplast DNA sequences. Topologies from parsimony and Bayesian analyses were mostly congruent. However, the relationships of E. poselgeri were not consistent between analyses. A second Bayesian analysis using a long-branch extraction test resulted in a topology with the morphological position of E. poselgeri congruent with that in parsimony analysis. Parsimony and Bayesian analyses corroborated the monophyly of Echinocereus, which included eight monophyletic groups. The combined phylogeny integrated into different clades those taxa that were not determined in previous analyses and changed the relationships of some recognized clades. The clades did not recover the recent infrageneric classification. In the present study, a new sectional classification for Echinocereus is proposed based on the eight recovered clades, which is supported by a combination of morphological and molecular characters. An identification key for sections in the genus is included.     

Molecular phylogeny of the hyperdiverse genus Sarcophaga (Diptera: Sarcophagidae), and comparison between algorithms for identification of rogue taxa

The hyperdiverse genus Sarcophaga Meigen, with about 890 valid species arranged within 169 subgenera, accounts for almost half of the diversity of the subfamily Sarcophaginae. Current phylogenetic hypotheses for this genus are poorly supported or based on small taxon sets, or both. Here, we use molecular data from the genes COI and 28S to reconstruct the phylogeny of Sarcophaga based on the most comprehensive sampling for the group to date: 144 species from 47 subgenera, including representatives from all regional faunas for the first time. Of the total sequences of Sarcophaga used in the present study, 94.7% were newly generated. The secondary structure of the D1–D3 expansion segments of 28S is presented for the first time for the family Sarcophagidae, and is used in a multiple sequence alignment. Branch support and tree resolution increased remarkably through rogue taxa identification and exclusion. Rogue behaviour was explained mostly as a missing data problem. The RogueNaRok web service and the algorithms chkmoves, IterPCR and prunmajor implemented in the computer program TNT were equally good at identifying critical rogue species, but chkmoves and IterPCR also identified rogue clades. Pruning rogues increased the number of monophyletic subgenera in consensus trees from one to six out of 19 subgenera with more than one representative species. Bayesian inference, maximum‐likelihood and parsimony analyses recovered more monophyletic subgenera after the removal of rogue taxa, with parsimony showing the largest improvements in branch support and resolution. Although with low support, Nearctic taxa were found to be the earliest diverging lineages, followed by a subsequent diversification of Old World faunas, which is in agreement with currently available evidence of a New World origin and early diversification of Sarcophaga.     

Phylogeny of Impatiens (Balsaminaceae): integrating molecular and morphological evidence into a new classification

Impatiens L. is one of the largest angiosperm genera, containing over 1000 species, and is notorious for its taxonomic difficulty. Here, we present, to our knowledge, the most comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of the genus to date based on a total evidence approach. Forty‐six morphological characters, mainly obtained from our own investigations, are combined with sequence data from three genetic regions, including nuclear ribosomal ITS and plastid atpB‐rbcL and trnL‐F. We include 150 Impatiens species representing all clades recovered by previous phylogenetic analyses as well as three outgroups. Maximum‐parsimony and Bayesian inference methods were used to infer phylogenetic relationships. Our analyses concur with previous studies, but in most cases provide stronger support. Impatiens splits into two major clades. For the first time, we report that species with three‐colpate pollen and four carpels form a monophyletic group (clade I). Within clade II, seven well‐supported subclades are recognized. Within this phylogenetic framework, character evolution is reconstructed, and diagnostic morphological characters for different clades and subclades are identified and discussed. Based on both morphological and molecular evidence, a new classification outline is presented, in which Impatiens is divided into two subgenera, subgen. Clavicarpa and subgen. Impatiens; the latter is further subdivided into seven sections.     

Phylogeny and reclassification of Cryptini (Hymenoptera,Ichneumonidae, Cryptinae), with implications for ichneumonid higher‐level classification

The first comprehensive phylogenetic study of the wasp tribe Cryptini (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Cryptinae) is presented, based on 109 morphological characters and molecular data from seven loci. The dataset includes 370 species, 308 of which are from Cryptini, covering 182 of its 250 genera. Results from parsimony and likelihood analyses are generally congruent. The topology has several implications for ichneumonid higher‐level classification. Previous definitions of the Ichneumoniformes clade are supported, though newly including the Microleptinae. The cryptine subtribe Ateleutina is consistently recovered outside of the Cryptini clade and should be treated as a separate subfamily, Ateleutinae stat.n. The tribe Phygadeuontini is shown to be polyphyletic: while most of the sampled taxa were recovered in a single clade, many of its members are more closely related to the Ichneumoninae, Ateleutinae or Cryptini. Pending a more detailed study, the group should be treated as a separate subfamily, Phygadeuontinae stat. rev . The former Hemigastrini are recovered as largely monophyletic but with important exceptions. Hemigaster Brullé is recovered as part of the Phygadeuontini and is transferred to that group. Echthrus Gravenhorst is consistently recovered as part of Cryptini, rendering Aptesini as the correct name for the tribe. The subfamily Cryptinae should be restricted to the tribes Aptesini and Cryptini. Within Cryptini, the results show little support for the current subtribal classification, with most subtribes recovered as polyphyletic. A number of relatively stable clades are identified and discussed, but the relationships among them are weakly supported. Most of these clades are morphologically heterogeneous and building a subtribal classification based on them would be ineffectual; they are therefore treated under the informal designation of genus groups. The results highlight the ubiquity of morphological homoplasy in Cryptini, and provide a framework from which to address further systematic and evolutionary questions on this hyperdiverse group of parasitic wasps.     

Phylogenetic relationships,subdivision, and biogeography of the cyprinid tribe Labeonini (sensu ) (Teleostei: Cypriniformes), with comments on the implications of lips and associated structures in the labeonin classification

The Labeonini (sensu Rainboth, 1991) is a tribe of the subfamily Cyprininae, the largest subfamily of Cypriniformes. With around 400 species in 34 genera, this tribe is widely distributed in the freshwaters of tropical Africa and Asia. Most species are adapted to fast-flowing streams and rivers, and exhibit unique morphological modifications associated with their lips and other structures around the mouth. The monophyly of this tribe has been tested and generally accepted in previous morphological and molecular studies. The major objectives of this study were to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships within the tribe Labeonini, test its monophyly and explore the taxonomic subdivisions, intrarelationships and biogeography of the group. The value of the morphological characters associated with the lips and other associated structures in the taxonomic classification of labeonins was also discussed. Nucleotide sequences (3867 bp) of four unlinked nuclear loci were obtained from 51 species in 18 Labeonini genera from throughout the range of the tribe. Maximum parsimony, partitioned maximum likelihood and partitioned Bayesian analyses were used for phylogenetic inference from combined and separate gene data sets. Based on our results, the monophyly of Labeonini was well supported. Two major clades could be recovered within the tribe. Three subclades could further be recognized from the first clade. These clades/subclades are not consistent with groupings of any of previous workers using either morphological or molecular characters for phylogenetic inference. Only five currently recognized genera in this analysis are monophyletic. The similarity between some lips and associated structures (e.g. suctorial discs) of labeonins may due to convergence or parallelism instead of common ancestry. Labeonins of Southeast Asia, India and China are closely related to each other; the multiple clades of African taxa do not form a single monophyletic group, indicating multiple, independent dispersal events of labeonins into Africa from Asia.     

Phylogenetics of tribe Sabiceeae (Ixoroideae,Rubiaceae) revisited,with a new subgeneric classification for Sabicea

Tribe Sabiceeae (Ixoroideae, Rubiaceae) has undergone recent taxonomical changes with the incorporation of the related genera Ecpoma, Pseudosabicea and Stipularia into the type genus Sabicea. We use phylogenetic analysis and morphological data to verify the relationships among members of the tribe, including the most comprehensive taxon sampling of the tribe to date with 74 of 145 species. Sequence data from the nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and three plastid markers (petD, rps16, trnT–F) were used to infer relationships among the members of the tribe. Individual analyses using maximum likelihood, parsimony and Bayesian approaches reveal several supported clades: the former genus Stipularia is resolved as a monophyletic unit, but Ecpoma is monophyletic only if Sabicea urbaniana and Sabicea xanthotricha are included (corresponding to Sabicea subgenus Stipulariopsis sensu Wernham). Pseudosabicea is biphyletic, with one clade corresponding to section Anisophyllae of Hallé (1964) and the other one to the other sections (Floribundae and Sphaericae) of the genus. Eleven morphological characteristics were recorded for all species studied and seven have been mapped onto the phylogenetic tree to study their evolution in the group and assess their value for the classification of Sabicea s.l. Finally, our study shows that a combination of diagnostic characteristics should be used to differentiate each group and we propose to recognise four subgenera in Sabicea.     

Phylogeny and classification of diving beetles in the tribe Cybistrini (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae, Dytiscinae)

Phylogenetic relationships among members of the diving beetle tribe Cybistrini (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) were inferred from analysis of 47 adult and larval morphological characters and sequences from portions of the genes cytochrome oxidase I (COI) and II (COII), histone III (H3) and wingless. Thirty‐three species of Cybistrini were included, representing all genus‐groups except Regimbartina Chatanay and Megadytes (Bifurcitus) Brinck, and most historically recognized species groups and subgenera used in the tribe. Outgroups include six species from other tribes within Dytiscinae and Lancetinae. Analyses included parsimony analysis of the combined data, likelihood analysis of combined molecular data and partitioned Bayesian analysis of the combined data. Results indicate that Cybistrini is well supported as a monophyletic group. Within the tribe, all currently recognized genus groups were found to be monophyletic with the exception of Onychohydrus Schaum, which is paraphyletic with respect to Austrodytes Watts in the parsimony analysis, but monophyletic in the likelihood and Bayesian analyses, and Cybister sensu stricto, which is paraphyletic with respect to C. (Melanectes) Brinck and C. (Scaphinectes) Ádám in the parsimony analysis or only the latter in the likelihood and Bayesian analyses. Results also suggest that some, but not all, historically recognized species groups or subgenera in the large genus Cybister Curtis are monophyletic, and this is discussed and compared. To improve the classification, the name Sternhydrus Brinck is elevated from subgenus to genus rank ( new status ). Four subgenera in the genus Cybister are recognized: C. (Melanectes) Brinck, C. (Megadytoides) Brinck ( resurrected ), C. (Neocybister) Miller, Bergsten and Whiting ( new subgenus ) and C. (Cybister) Curtis. The following new synonyms are established: Trochalus Dejean ( new synonym ), and ScaphinectesÁdám = Cybister (Cybister) ( new synonym ). The Neotropical species Cybister parvus Trémouilles (not examined) apparently does not fit any historical or currently recognized genus‐group diagnosis in Cybistrini, so it is retained in Cybister but incertae sedis with respect to subgenus. In addition to classification, the evolution of the unique character combinations present in cybistrines are discussed. A key to the adults of genera and subgenera is presented.     

A molecular and morphological phylogeny of the extant Augochlorini (Hymenoptera,Apoidea) with comments on implications for biogeography

The Augochlorini Beebe is a New World tribe of bees comprising 663 described species. Relationships among the genera of this monophyletic tribe remain uncertain. Here I provide a comprehensive phylogeny using morphological and molecular information. In all, 54 Augochlorini species plus 16 outgroups and 3017 molecular and 105 morphological characters were analysed. Sequences for four genes were analysed using Bayesian inference, maximum likelihood and parsimony. Morphological characters were taken from a literature review and analysed alone and in combination with molecular data using parsimony. The monophyly of Augochlorini and most genera is confirmed, with divergence of the main lineages of the tribe around 55–20 Ma. Seven clades were supported by most analyses and are here treated as genus‐level groups, as follows (combined analysis topology): (Corynura group, (Chlerogella group, (Rhinocorynura group, (Augochloropsis, (Megaloptidia group, (Neocorynura group, (Augochlora group, Megalopta group))))))). According to this topology, dim‐light foraging and cleptoparasitism arose three times in the tribe. According to my hypothesis, the diversification of Augochlorini may have begun as a response to vicariant events, including the split of the Neotropical/Andean regions and marine transgressions in the Amazon region.     

The phylogenetic utility of chloroplast and nuclear DNA markers and the phylogeny of the Rubiaceae tribe Spermacoceae

The phylogenetic utility of chloroplast (atpB-rbcL, petD, rps16, trnL-F) and nuclear (ETS, ITS) DNA regions was investigated for the tribe Spermacoceae of the coffee family (Rubiaceae). ITS was, despite often raised cautions of its utility at higher taxonomic levels, shown to provide the highest number of parsimony informative characters, in partitioned Bayesian analyses it yielded the fewest trees in the 95% credible set, it resolved the highest proportion of well resolved clades, and was the most accurate region as measured by the partition metric and the proportion of correctly resolved clades (well supported clades retrieved from a combined analysis regarded as “true”). For Hedyotis, the nuclear 5S-NTS was shown to be potentially as useful as ITS, despite its shorter sequence length. The chloroplast region being the most phylogenetically informative was the petD group II intron.We also present a phylogeny of Spermacoceae based on a Bayesian analysis of the four chloroplast regions, ITS, and ETS combined. Spermacoceae are shown to be monophyletic. Clades supported by high posterior probabilities are discussed, especially in respect to the current generic classification. Notably, Oldenlandia is polyphyletic, the two subgenera of Kohautia are not sister taxa, and Hedyotis should be treated in a narrow sense to include only Asian species.     

Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetic Utility of the Chloroplastrpl16Intron inChusqueaand the Bambusoideae (Poaceae)

Phylogenetic relationships withinChusquea,a diverse genus of neotropical woody bamboos, and among selected members of the Bambusoideae were explored usingrpl16intron sequence data from the chloroplast genome. Mechanisms of mutation, including slipped-strand mispairing, secondary structure, minute inversions, and base substitutions, were examined within therpl16intron, and their effects on sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis were investigated. Thirty-five bamboo sequences were generated and two separate matrices were analyzed using maximum parsimony. In the first, 23 sequences fromChusquea,1 ofNeurolepis,and 3 outgroups were included.Neurolepiswas supported as sister toChusquea, Chusqueawas strongly supported as a monophyletic lineage, and three species ofChusqueasubg.Rettbergiawere resolved as the most basal clade within the genus. In the second analysis, 15 sequences, 14 from across the subfamily and 1 outgroup, were included. A Bambusoideae clade was recovered with the Olyreae/Parianeae (herbaceous bamboos) and the Bambuseae (woody bamboos) each supported as monophyletic. Two clades corresponding to temperate and tropical woody bamboos were derived within the Bambuseae and the tropical taxa were further split into New World and Old World clades. Therpl16intron in bamboos was found to be susceptible to frequent length mutations of multiple origins, nonindependent character evolution, and regions of high mutability, all of which created difficulties in alignment and phylogenetic analysis; nonetheless therpl16intron is phylogenetically informative at the inter- and intrageneric levels in bamboos.     

Phylogeny of the genus Palmanura (Collembola: Neanuridae)

In order to assess the phylogenetic structure of the springtail genus Palmanura, as well as to test the monophyly of the tribe Sensillanurini (Neanuridae: Neanurinae), a data matrix of morphological (chaetotactic and other) characters of members of this group was assembled and analysed in the light of Wagner parsimony. The data matrix included all the known members of the Neotropical genus Palmanura, plus representatives of Sensillanura and Americanura. Although not all the clades obtained were highly supported by bootstrap resampling, some structures were relatively constant under different approaches. Alternative analyses (unordered and ordered character states, rescaled weighting procedure) were applied. While alternative solutions were obtained, a number of structures were shared by the results irrespective of the method used. On this basis, the results suggest that some further reassessment is required to confirm formally the monophyly of the tribe Sensillanurini. The genera Palmanura and Americanura are mutually poly/paraphyletic; we thus suggest that Palmanura should be considered as a synonym of Americanura, although some character reassessment and more varied outgroup species may be necessary before a formal generic redefinition can be proposed. Finally, a comparison of the performance of the characters under Wagner parsimony analysis indicated that differences in the characters’ retention indexes are due not to the topological (tagmal) position of the traits involved, but to character coding: the characters describing quantitative features (generally numbers of setae) generally performed worse than other types of characters under parsimony. An updated list of the known members of the Sensillanurini (Collembola: Neanuridae: Neanurinae) is presented.
© The Willi Hennig Society 2009.     

Revision of the pale-bellied Micronycteris Gray, 1866 (Chiroptera,Phyllostomidae) with descriptions of two new species

The systematics and taxonomy of the Neotropical genus Micronycteris are not yet resolved; previous studies evidenced paraphyletic relationships, a number of potential undescribed species, and inadequate diagnostic characters. This revision focuses on the pale-bellied members of the genus using phylogenetic and morphometric tools, an increased sample size with all recognized taxa, and an expanded geographic coverage relative to prior studies. For the genetic analyses (n = 166), four molecular markers were concatenated, one mitochondrial (cytb), one nuclear (Fgb-I7), and two Y-chromosomal (DBY5 and DBY7). In the Bayesian and maximum likelihood analyses, the recognized subgenera Schizonycteris, Leuconycteris, Xenoctenes, and Micronycteris were recovered as monophyletic. The pale-bellied subgenera, Schizonycteris and Leuconycteris, were not sister clades; thus, venter coloration was not monophyletic. Leuconycteris was sister to the dark-bellied Micronycteris, and Schizonycteris was sister to the rest of the genus. Micronycteris schmidtorum was genetically defined for the first time, and it was determined all previous phylogenetic studies used a misidentified M. minuta from Bolivia. Our results showed a sister relationship between M. schmidtorum and M. brosseti, which redefines Leuconycteris. The subgenus Schizonycteris was also redefined, and it presented two well-supported clades from Central America and western Ecuador that are described as new species. Results are supported by a multivariate morphometric analyses (n = 114), karyological, and morphological comparisons. The taxonomic implications are discussed and emended diagnoses presented for the pale-bellied subgenera and for M. schmidtorum.