Concordance between classifications of the Ciconiidae based on behavioral and morphological data

Summary Kahl's data on courtship behavior in the Ciconiidae were recoded and analyzed from a phenetic viewpoint. The results reflect his published classification except for the placement ofCiconia nigra and the generaJabiru andEphippiorhynchus. Similarities based on skeletal morphology are highly congruent with those recalculated from the behavioral data. The classification suggested by both sets of data is similar to that proposed byKahl with the following changes: (1)Jabiru is included withEphippiorhynchus; (2)Ephippiorhynchus is transferred into the Ciconiini.

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Klassifikation der Ciconiidae nach ethologischen und morphologischen Daten

Zusammenfassung Die DatenKahls über das Sexualverhalten der Ciconiidae wurden nach äußeren Merkmalen codiert und analysiert. Die Ergebnisse spiegeln seine publizierte Klassifikation wider, mit Ausnahme der Stellung vonCiconia nigra und der GeneraJabiru undEphippiorhynchus. Ähnlichkeiten der Skelettmorphologie stimmen mit dem Vergleich der Verhaltensdaten in hohem Maße überein. Die auf der Grundlage von beiden Datensätzen sich abzeichnende Klassifikation ist jener vonKahl sehr ähnlich mit Ausnahme der folgenden Änderungen:Jabiru ist mitEphippiorhynchus zusammenzufassen;Ephippiorhynchus wird in die Ciconiini eingegliedert.

     

The phylogenetic position of early hexapod lineages: morphological data contradict molecular data

Abstract. A review of different studies on the phylogenetic relationships of the early Hexapoda lineages shows that analyses based on molecular sequence data have led to labile and sometimes incongruous results, introducing doubt as to the reliability of the cladograms as a whole. In a recent analysis using molecular data, the Collembola, usually considered as early branching hexapods, appear to occupy a position outside the assemblage of Crustacea and Insecta, leading to the rejection of the traditional view of hexapod monophyly. However, many morphological features, as well as the results of cladistic analyses based on morphological and developmental information, contradict these conclusions. More generally, it appears that in the present state of the analytical strategies, hypotheses concerning arthropod phylogenies obtained from morphological and developmental criteria and combined analyses involving molecular and morphological data provide more reliable results than those generated by molecular information alone.     

Cladistic analysis of molecular and morphological data

Considerable progress has been made recently in phylogenetic reconstruction in a number of groups of organisms. This progress coincides with two major advances in systematics: new sources have been found for potentially informative characters (i. e., molecular data) and (more importantly) new approaches have been developed for extracting historical information from old or new characters (i. e., Hennigian phylogenetic systematics or cladistics). The basic assumptions of cladistics (the existence and splitting of lineages marked by discrete, heritable, and independent characters, transformation of which occurs at a rate slower than divergence of lineages) are discussed and defended. Molecular characters are potentially greater in quantity than (and usually independent of) more traditional morphological characters, yet their great simplicity (i. e., fewer potential character states; problems with determining homology), and difficulty of sufficient sampling (particularly from fossils) can lead to special difficulties. Expectations of the phylogenetic behavior of different types of data are investigated from a theoretical standpoint, based primarily on variation in the central parameter λ (branch length in terms of expected number of character changes per segment of a tree), which also leads to possibilities for character and character state weighting. Also considered are prospects for representing diverse yet clearly monophyletic clades in larger-scale cladistic analyses, e. g., the exemplar method vs. “compartmentalization” (a new approach involving substituting an inferred “archetype” for a large clade accepted as monophyletic based on previous analyses). It is concluded that parsimony is to be preferred for synthetic, “total evidence” analyses because it appears to be a robust method, is applicable to all types of data, and has an explicit and interpretable evolutionary basis. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Comparison of molecular and morphological data on St Helena: Elaphoglossum

The endemic elaphoglossoid ferns, Elaphoglossum dimorphum, E. nervosum and Microstaphyla furcata of St Helena, form a closely related group within section Lepidoglossa when analysed phylogenetically using sequences from the chloroplast trnL intron (partial) and trnL-F intergenic spacer. Microstaphyla furcata, traditionally placed in its own genus, is clearly shown to belong to Elaphoglossum confirming the previous transfer of this species to Elaphoglossum as E. bifurcatum. There is hardly any trnL-F sequence divergence between the species, in fact sequences of E. nervosum and E. dimorphum are identical. These results are consistent with the possible origin of E. dimorphum as a hybrid between E. bifurcatum and E. nervosum or with the view that the three species are the result of a recent radiation. The potential conflict between phylogenetic and morphological distinctness in determining species conservation priorities is discussed.     

Platyrrhine systematics: A simultaneous analysis of molecular and morphological data

Platyrrhine phylogeny has been investigated repeatedly with morphological characters and DNA nuclear gene sequences, with partially inconsistent results. Given the finding in the past decade that the mitochondrial genome is a potentially valuable source of phylogenetic information, we gathered DNA sequence data of a fragment of the 16S and the entire 12S mitochondrial genes. The objectives were to generate a cladistic phylogeny based on these data and to combine them in a simultaneous analysis with morphological characters and preexisting nuclear DNA sequences. Mitochondrial data analyzed on its own yielded a cladogram that was different from those generated with other data sets. The simultaneous analysis of mitochondrial, nuclear, and morphological data yielded a tree most congruent with that generated with nuclear data and to a lesser degree with the morphological one. It depicted a basal dichotomy that led to two major clades: one of them comprised [Atelinae (Callicebus + Pitheciini)] and the other major clade comprised [Aotus ((Cebus, Saimiri) (Callitrichinae))]. The weakest point of the phylogeny was the position of Aotus as basal within their clade as opposed to more closely linked with either the callitrichines or Cebus-Saimiri. Relationships within callitrichines and atelines were unstable as well. The simultaneous phylogenetic analysis of all data sets revealed congruent signal in all of them that was partially obscured in the separate analyses. Am J Phys Anthropol 106:261–281, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

The interrelationships of Acanthomorph fishes: A total evidence approach using molecular and morphological data

DNA sequence and morphological data were analyzed for specimens of twenty-five species of acanthomorph fishes and two specimens representing the outgroups Aulopiformes and Myctophiformes. A 572 base-pair (bp) segment of the 12S ribosomal mitochondrial gene, 1112 bp from three regions of the 28S ribosomal nuclear gene, and 38 morphological transformation series were analyzed under the criterion of maximum parsimony. The total evidence analysis resulted in a set of four most parsimonious trees. Relationships common to all trees are largely congruent with the hypothesis articulated by Johnson and Patterson (1993. Bull. Mar. Sci. 52, 554-626).     

Systematics of Halosarpheia based on morphological and molecular data

The genus Halosarpheia (Halosphaeriales) was established for marine ascomycetes with obpyriform to sub-globose, coriaceous, brown to black ostiolate ascomata with long necks; hamathecia of catenophyses; thin-walled, unitunicate, persistent asci with thick-walled apices; and ellipsoid, one septate, hyaline ascospores equipped with coiled, threadlike apical appendages that unfurl in water. Emphasis on ascospore appendage morphology has led to the inclusion in the genus of morphologically disparate fungi from a variety of marine and freshwater habitats. To better understand the evolutionary relationships of Halosarpheia species, phylogenetic analyses were conducted on 16 Halosarpheia species, 13 other species of Halosphaeriales and representatives of the Microascales, Hypocreales, Sordariales and Xylariales using 18S and 28S rDNA sequence data. All of the Halosarpheia species occurred on the Halosphaeriales clade. The type species of the genus, H. fibrosa, occurred on a well-supported clade with two morphologically similar species, H. trullifera and H. unicellularis. This clade, which phylogenetically was distant from the clades of other Halosarpheia species, represents the genus Halosarpheia sensu stricto. The other Halosarpheia species were distributed among eight other well-supported clades clearly separated from one another based on molecular data. New generic names are established for six of these clades, one new species is described, and one species is transferred to Aniptodera. A table (Table I) comparing the morphology, habitat, substrate and distribution of the genera of aquatic ascomycetes with coiled, threadlike apical appendages treated in this study is provided, along with a key for their identification.     

Rethinking the phylogeny of scleractinian corals: a review of morphological and molecular data

Scleractinian corals, which include the architects of coral reefs, are found throughout the world's oceans and have left a rich fossil record over their 240 million year history. Their classification has been marked by confusion but recently developed molecular and morphological tools are now leading to a better understanding of the evolutionary history of this important group. Although morphological characters have been the basis of traditional classification in the group, they are relatively few in number. In addition, our current understanding of skeletal growth and homology is limited, and homoplasy is rampant, limiting the usefulness of morphological phylogenetics. Molecular phylogenetic hypotheses for the order, which have been primarily focused on reef-building corals, differ significantly from traditional classification. They suggest that the group is represented by two major lineages and do not support the monophyly of traditional suborders and most traditional families. It appears that once a substantial number of azooxanthellate taxa are included in molecular phylogenetic analyses, basal relationships within the group will be clearly defined. Understanding of relationships at lower taxonomic levels will be best clarified by combined analyses of morphological and molecular characters. Molecular phylogenies are being used to inform our understanding of the evolution of morphological characters in the Scleractinia. Better understanding of the evolution of these characters will help to integrate the systematics of fossil and extant taxa. We demonstrate how the combined use of morphological and molecular tools holds great promise for ending confusion in scleractinian systematics.     

The phylogenetic position of Brachiopoda—a comparison of morphological and molecular data

Analyses of rRNA and rDNA among Metazoa result in a hypothesis of a sistergroup relationship of Brachiopoda and certain spiralian taxa, whereas analyses of morphological data imply that Brachiopoda show affinities to Deuterostomia within the Radialia. Regarding Brachiopoda as a derived spiralian taxon must be followed by a reinterpretation of the evolution of distinct brachiopod morphological characters—like cleavage pattern, coelom or larva. The experimental insertion of a monophyletic taxon consisting of Brachiopoda and Phoronida into a widely accepted phylogenetic tree of Spiralia leads to the hypothesis that at least trimeric organization, mesosomal tentacular apparatus and heterogeneously assembled metanephridia are products of convergent evolution in Brachiopoda plus Phoronida and Deuterostomia. The hypothesis of a radialian nature of Brachiopoda and Phoronida, as implied by morphological data, remains as the most parsimonious possibility to explain the evolution of seven regarded characters (cleavage pattern, larva, tentacular apparatus, coelom, metameric segmentation, metanephridia and chaetae) in Brachiopoda. Due to the conflicting results of both methods a hitherto undetected systematical problem is discussed possibly hindering data comparability. If the course of evolution can principally be inferred from the information preserved in recent and fossil animals, the results should be congruent in the analyses of both, molecular and morphological data.     

A modern approach to rotiferan phylogeny: combining morphological and molecular data

The phylogeny of selected members of the phylum Rotifera is examined based on analyses under parsimony direct optimization and Bayesian inference of phylogeny. Species of the higher metazoan lineages Acanthocephala, Micrognathozoa, Cycliophora, and potential outgroups are included to test rotiferan monophyly. The data include 74 morphological characters combined with DNA sequence data from four molecular loci, including the nuclear 18S rRNA, 28S rRNA, histone H3, and the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I. The combined molecular and total evidence analyses support the inclusion of Acanthocephala as a rotiferan ingroup, but do not support the inclusion of Micrognathozoa and Cycliophora. Within Rotifera, the monophyletic Monogononta is sister group to a clade consisting of Acanthocephala, Seisonidea, and Bdelloidea-for which we propose the name Hemirotifera. We also formally propose the inclusion of Acanthocephala within Rotifera, but maintaining the name Rotifera for the new expanded phylum. Within Monogononta, Gnesiotrocha and Ploima are also supported by the data. The relationships within Ploima remain unstable to parameter variation or to the method of phylogeny reconstruction and poorly supported, and the analyses showed that monophyly was questionable for the families Dicranophoridae, Notommatidae, and Brachionidae, and for the genus Proales. Otherwise, monophyly was generally supported for the represented ploimid families and genera.     

The phylogeny of the Trypanosomatidae: the molecular and morphological approaches

The results of comparative analysis of two phylogenetic trees of the trypanosomatids based on morphological and molecular characters are discussed. The morphological dendrogram was based on 33 ultrastructural characters, 6 light microscope characteristics and 8 biological characters. Molecular UPGMA dendrogram depicting differences (Dice distance) between examined trypanosomatids is based on the universally primed PCR polymorphisms. The general topology of both dendrograms are similar, with the Trypanosoma at the base. The genus Wallaceina appears to be monophyletic. In a contrary, the genera Leptomonas, Crithidia and Herpetomonas look like artificial groups according to both methods used. The cyst-forming homoxenous trypanosomatids from insects represent a monophyletic clade, which seems to be a separate genus. Two species of within genus Wallaceina are arranged as a separate subgenus.     

Towards simultaneous analysis of morphological and molecular data in Hymenoptera

Principles and methods of simultaneous analysis in cladistics are reviewed, and the first, preliminary, analysis of combined molecular and morphological data on higher level relationships in Hymenoptera is presented to exemplify these principles. The morphological data from Ronquist et al . (1999) matrix, derived from the character diagnoses of the phylogenetic tree of Rasnitsyn (1988) , are combined with new molecular data for representatives of 10 superfamilies of Hymenoptera by means of optimization alignment. The resulting cladogram supports Apocrita and Aculeata as groups, and the superfamly Chrysidoidea, but not Chalcidoidea, Evanioidea, Vespoidea and Apoidea.     

Phylogeny of the lacebugs (Insecta: Heteroptera: Tingidae) using morphological and molecular data

A phylogeny of the Tingidae is provided on the basis of parsimony analysis with pre‐alignment as well as with direct optimization of 2018 bp from five loci (COI, Leu‐tRNA, COII, 16S and 28S) and a set of 30 morphological characters. The results obtained with either direct optimization or pre‐alignment methods of parsimony clearly show that Cantacaderinae are sister group to (Phatnominae + Tinginae). Several apomorphies, retrieved in different studies, characterize Cantacaderinae, Phatnominae and Tinginae, but only one characterizes the grouping of Phatnominae + Tinginae. In addition, no clear tribal division as currently used was highlighted within the Tinginae. The results are discussed in the light of earlier morphologically based hypotheses.     

New classification of liverworts based on molecular and morphological data

Complete sequences for the 18S-rRNA gene of 22 bryophytes (12 completely new) were determined and used to construct phylogenetic trees. The evaluation of sequence data according to the maximum parsimony principle (PAUP 3.1.1) and the neighbor-joining method (MEGA) results in similar phylogenetic trees in which theBryopsida appear as a sister group to theJungermanniopsida, and both together as a sister group to theMarchantiopsida. Among theMarchantiopsida, theSphaerocarpales diverge early as a separate clade. TheMetzgeriales andJungermanniales are monophyletic. They belong to one clade and cannot be separated by either method of evaluation.     

Systematic relationships of Nematomorpha based on molecular and morphological data

Abstract. We sequenced the 18S rRNA gene from 11 nematomorph species from 9 genera and derived hypotheses concerning the sister group of Nematomorpha and relationships within this taxon. The molecular and morphological data are consistent with the monophyly of Nematomorpha, a sister-group relationship between Nematomorpha and Nematoda, and a sister-group relationship between the marine genus Nectonema and all of the freshwater taxa, Gordiida. Hypotheses of relationships within Gordiida support the traditional taxa Gordiidae, Chordodidae, and Chordodinae but reject Parachordodinae and Spinochordodidae. The molecular results differ from those of previous morphological studies by suggesting a reduction of the two tail lobes at the posterior end of males in Chordodinae, monophyly of the genus Paragordionus , and paraphyly of the genus Chordodes .     

Phylogenetic assessment of molecular and morphological data for eutherian mammals

The interordinal relationships of eutherian (placental) mammals were evaluated by a phylogenetic analysis of four published data sets (three sequences and one morphological). The nature and degree of support and conflict for particular groups were assessed by separate bootstrap and homogeneity tests, which were followed by combined analyses of the sequence and morphological data. Between orders, strong support (i.e., > or = 95% bootstrap scores) was found for a paraphyletic Artiodactyla (relative to Cetacea) and a monophyletic Cetartiodactyla (Artiodactyla and Cetacea) and Paenungulata (Hyracoidea, Proboscidea, and Sirenia). In turn, some reasonable to strong evidence (> or = 85%) was obtained for Hyracoidea with Sirenia, Dermoptera with Scandentia, Glires (Lagomorpha with Rodentia), and Afrotheria (Amblysomus, Macroscelidea, Paenungulata, and Tubulidentata). Otherwise, no other interordinal clades were supported at these reasonable to strong levels. This overall lack of resolution for eutherian interordinal clusters agrees with other studies that suggest further progress will continue to be slow and difficult. Further resolution will require the integration of more recently published data, the continued sampling of taxa and characters, and the use of more powerful methods of data analysis.