A preliminary cladistic analysis of Nipponoserica,with implications for phylogenetic relationships among sericine chafers (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Sericini)

A cladistic analysis of the species of Nipponoserica Nomura, 1972, was executed using 36 morphological characters of adults. From the generated phylogenetic tree, the monophyly of the genus is supported, when Pseudosericania Kobayashi, 1980 is included. Consequently, Pseudosericania Kobayashi, 1980 is considered a junior subjective synonym of Nipponoserica Nomura, 1972. Interestingly, the analysis indicates the monophyly of the East Asian Nipponoserica and the North American Stilbolemma. A new genus, Xenoserica gen. nov., is established for the basal monophyletic clade found for the Himalayan species so far assigned to Nipponoserica including the first brachypterous species of Sericini from the Himalaya. Two new species are described: Xenoserica brachyptera sp. nov. from Nepal, and Nipponoserica dahongshanica sp. nov. from Hubei (China).     

Species-level diversification of African dwarf crocodiles (Genus Osteolaemus): A geographic and phylogenetic perspective

The taxonomy of the African dwarf crocodile (genus Osteolaemus) has been disputed since a novel morphotype was discovered in the early 20th Century. Because this poorly-known reptile is widely hunted throughout the forests of Central and West Africa, resolving the existence and extent of taxonomic units has important management and conservation implications. Lack of molecular data from individuals of known origin and historical disagreement on diagnostic morphological characters have hindered attempts to settle one of the most important taxonomic questions in the Crocodylia. In an effort to clarify the evolutionary relationships among dwarf crocodiles, we sequenced three mitochondrial and two nuclear genes using a large sample of dwarf crocodiles from known localities across major drainage basins of forested Africa. Concordant results from Bayesian, maximum likelihood, maximum parsimony and population aggregation analytical methods support a previously recognized division of the dwarf crocodile into a Congo Basin form (O. osborni) and a West African form (Osteolaemus tetraspis), but also reveal a third diagnosable lineage from West Africa warranting recognition as an separate taxonomic unit. Corrected genetic distances between geographic regions ranged from 0.2% to 0.6% in nuclear fragments and 10.0 to 16.2% in mitochondrial COI. Population aggregation, using fixed and alternate character (nucleotide) states to cluster or divide populations, recovered 232 such molecular characters in 4286 bp of sequence data and unambiguously aggregated populations into their respective geographic clade. Several previously recognized morphological differences coincide with our molecular analysis to distinguish Congo Basin crocodiles from the Ogooué Basin and West Africa. Discrete morphological characters have not yet been documented between the latter two regions, suggesting further work is needed or molecular data may be required to recognize taxonomic divisions in cases where putative species are morphologically cryptic. This study highlights the importance of using widespread taxon sampling and a multiple evidence approach to diagnose species boundaries and reveal cryptic diversity.     

鲤科鲌亚科鱼类的系统发育及动物地理学

以雅罗鱼亚科为外群,采用分支系统学的原理和方法对鲌亚科17个属(须鳊属除外)进行了系统发育和动物地理学的分析.结果表明,(1)鲌亚科这17个属为一个单系群,并由4个较小的单系群组成;(2)鲌亚科现在的地理分布格局除源自离散事件外,主要源于扩散事件.鲌亚科的特征演化还表明,东亚地区地质历史的反转演化和平行演化可能在鲌亚科系统发育过程中起了重要的作用.     

A New Method for Cladistic Analysis—Median Elimination Series (MES)

The use of parsimony (or the principle of simplicity) in phylogenetic inference is reviewed. The major problem in using parsimony for phylogenetic reconstruction is that neither a single solution for a given set of data nor the most parsimonious tree could be provided. Therefore, based on recognition and judgement of similarity of organisms by Hennig's advanced character (1965) and some particular principles from evolutionary theory of Darwinism accepted by many systematists as general truths (Bonde 1977; Wiley 1975; Gaffrey 1979), the author has developed a new method, Elimination Series through Median Selection (Median Elimination Series, MES for short), for phylogenetic analysis. In addition to using the advanced characters for understanding the relationships between taxa, MES emphasizes that the mosaic characters including both primitive and advanced in an array of characters play an important part in determining the nodes or branches and distinguishing the taxa.The author considers median units as ancestors in a phylogenetic tree like Farris, but the concept and algorithm of “median” differ from Farris' (1970) in: (1) The author's median involves the top taxon and unplaced one, but Farris' median does the top taxon, its ancestor as well as unplaced one; (2) The median taken by the author is of common value or the least one among the associated characters of two taxa. However, the median taken by Farris is median numerical value among the three (3) The median or median unit called by the author is the numerical value of the relatively primitive character or taxon between the advanced characters or the taxa stood apart from the original position. Farris' one is the median position or number in the center of three taxa or its associated characters. The author recognizes that reversion of characters is possible and obtains the knowledge of it from observation and analysis of characters of organisms or scientific experiment and distinguished through analysis of morphocline and co-variation in a series of taxa, but not from induction only by mathematical model based on the principle of simplicity. The author divides co-variation into 4 types: 1. Progressive co-variation. Transformation series of characters A and a is as follows: A → A' a → a' reversed co-variation. Transformation series of characters A and a is as follows: A ← A' a ← a' 3. Progression-reversion co-variation. Transformation series of characters A and a is follows: A → A' a ← a' 4. Reversion-progression co-variation. Transformation series of characters A and a is as follows: A ← A' a → a' The characters next to the arrows should be advanced. Co-variation for most of the species of Cissus from China belongs to the type 1 and that for C. repanda Vahl. to the type 3, without types 2 and 4. In determining the progressive co-variation, reverse evolution of character could be distinguished through the analysis of morphocline and co-variation. The author has recognized two types of cyclic polarity, including unidirectional and bidirectional ones. For the former, the character may return back to the original state through more than one step. In fact, this is a complex reversion. For the latter, the character may reach a advanced state from the original one via two different ways. In fact, this is special progressive transformation series and it may often occur in complex reticulate evolution as a small net, for example, in evolution of leaf fragment and others of angiosperms (Meyen 1973). The cyclic polarity in C. repanda Vahl. is bidirectional (see transformation series 11 of the characters in Cissus). Transformation series of All the characters have been determined on the basis of analysis of morphocline, co-variation and cyclic polarity. In this paper, the three steps of understanding phylogenetic system are developed: (1) recognition of homologous characters; (2) discovery of internal relationships between homologous characters in order to obtain transformation series or phylogeny of homologous characters; (3) discovery of internal relationships between phylogenies of homologous characters in order to get a phylogenetic system of organisms or approaching understanding essence of evolution. The result inferred by MES is based on some principles of evolution from Darwin and Hennig but not judged by the principle of simplicity or parsimony from Popper (1960, 1968). The statement in this paper attempts to show that if a dilemma in modern cladistics could be solved, its principles must be reconsidered. Decontaminated thianthrene disproportion. 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Comparison of the Cladograms Produced by Li's Method and Farris' Method

In order to avoid producing many equally most parsimonious trees, Li (1990) developed a new cladistic method, the Median Elimination Series (MES), to construct a single cladogram for a given data set. However, we found that Li's method can produce more than one tree if two or more taxa have the same advancement index (which is the total number of apomorphies for a taxon in a given data set), because there is no objective method to decide which taxon should be connected first and different orders of connection can produce different trees. Li claimed that the result produced by his method did not apply the principle of simplicity (parsimony). Nevertheless, Zhang (1991) recognised that Li's method actually accepted the principle of parsimony. Here we demonstrated that Li's method also can produce the minimum-length trees. We conclude that Li's method could produce more than one tree and the tree(s) may be the minimum-length possible. However, the length of tree(s) depends on the order of connection of the taxa. The major problems in using Li's methodare discussed.     

Phylogenetic relationships among the lepidopteran and trichopteran suborders (Insecta) from the embryological standpoint1

Adopting the cladistic method in comparative embryology, 27 embryonic characters were analyzed to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among the lepidopteran and trichopteran suborders, viz., Annulipalpia, Integripalpia, Zeugloptera, Dacnonypha, Exoporia, Monotrysia, and Ditrysia. The resultant cladogram is basically coincident with that proposed by Kristensen . The order Trichoptera and Lepidoptera constitute a monophyletic group on the basis of one synapomorphy, the presence of well developed silk glands in embryos. The Trichoptera are separable from the Lepidoptera by the states of four characters. The Trichoptera, as a whole, are quite homogenous, and embryological data provide no rational ground for the separation of this order into the Annulipalpia and Integripalpia at a subordinal level. On the contrary, the embryonic development of the Lepidoptera becomes divergent from the most primitive condition to a specialized one according to suborders. The Zeugloptera are the sister group of all other Lepidoptera, because they share two apomorphies with the latter. The Dacnonypha are the most primitive next to the Zeugloptera, and have a sister-group relationship with the Exoporia + (Monotrysia + Ditrysia), being held together with the latter by five synapomorphies. Although the Exoporia retain almost as many plesiomorphic characters as the Dacnonypha, they have a sister-group relationship with the Monotrysia + Ditrysia, as inferred on the basis of two synapomorphies. The Monotrysia and Ditrysia have a sistergroup relationship, and are the most advanced groups in the Lepidoptera judging from their shared acquisition of many apomorphic characters.     

中国灵猫科的支序系统学分析

选取分布于中国境内的8属9种灵猫科动物的88个骨骼性状、31个外部形态性状和1个行为性状,运用替代外群法分别以赤狐(犬科狐属)和青鼬(鼬科貂属)共同或单独作为外群进行支序分析,得出10个支序图,其步长(TL)为：106～136,一致性指数(CI)为0．581—0．660,保留指数(RI)为0．610—0．714。经合意分析得到4个相似的支序图,其TL为41—136,CI为0．581—0．732,RI为0．610—0．818,结果支持：①斑灵狸、大灵猫、小灵猫构成一个单系群,与传统分类一致(均属灵猫亚科);②椰子狸、花面狸、熊狸构成一个单系群,与传统分类一致(均属长尾狸亚科);③红颊獴、食蟹獴与灵猫科其他种为姐妹群关系(Bootstrap检验支持率100％),建议獴类为一亚科;④长颌带狸拥有较多自近裔性状如三个门齿孔,是一个高度特化的种类,其系统地位有待进一步研究。     

Spatial congruence between biotic history and species richness of Muscidae (Diptera,Insecta) in the Andean and Neotropical regions

Considering that Earth and life evolve together, the present study aims to verify whether the species richness patterns are spatially congruent to biotic history. Niche conservatism was adopted as a background hypothesis to associate species richness with phylogenetic information. A parallel analysis between this procedure and cladistic biogeography was undertaken. Eleven Muscidae genera that were previously systematically reviewed for phylogenetic hypotheses were chosen for the analysis. The genera were split into ‘basal’ and ‘derived’ species, following terminal taxon root distance within each genus. Richness patterns were contrasted for the most basal and most derived 33% of species, and richness maps were constructed at 220 × 220 km grid size. A difference richness map was drawn by derived minus basal values (=derived?basal). For regions with difference values around zero, a component analysis was performed and compared with relationships established by other studies. Derived and basal species richness showed a very concise richness gradient in the Neotropical region and it was compatible with its known biogeographical history. In the Andean region, richness did not show any pattern. The area cladogram grouped Subantarctic subregion in a polytomy and Central Chile as a paraphyletic group. All hypotheses about area relationship were divergent and no vicariant pattern could be recognized in Andean region. In Neotropical region, Muscidae results corroborated a previous component relationship. The hypothesis that Paleogene climatic changes could drive the biotic component’s split was suggested. In the Andean region, recently ice sheet covering events had driven the species to disperse and/or extinct resulted in absence of pattern seen either in richness analysis or in component analysis. It is believed that species richness is linked to biotic history and this fact may be considered when evaluating hypotheses to explain broad‐scale richness gradients.     

The Origin and Evolution of tRNA Inferred from Phylogenetic Analysis of Structure

The evolutionary history of the two structural and functional domains of tRNA is controversial but harbors the secrets of early translation and the genetic code. To explore the origin and evolution of tRNA, we reconstructed phylogenetic trees directly from molecular structure. Forty-two structural characters describing the geometry of 571 tRNAs and three statistical parameters describing thermodynamic and mechanical features of molecules quantitatively were used to derive phylogenetic trees of molecules and molecular substructures. Trees of molecules failed to group tRNA according to amino acid specificity and did not reveal the tripartite nature of life, probably due to loss of phylogenetic signal or because tRNA diversification predated organismal diversification. Trees of substructures derived from both structural and statistical characters support the origin of tRNA in the acceptor arm and the hypothesis that the top half domain composed of acceptor and pseudouridine (TΨC) arms is more ancient than the bottom half domain composed of dihydrouridine (DHU) and anticodon arms. This constitutes the cornerstone of the genomic tag hypothesis that postulates tRNAs were ancient telomeres in the RNA world. The trees of substructures suggest a model for the evolution of the major functional and structural components of tRNA. In this model, short RNA hairpins with stems homologous to the acceptor arm of present day tRNAs were extended with regions homologous to TΨC and anticodon arms. The DHU arm was then incorporated into the resulting three-stemmed structure to form a proto-cloverleaf structure. The variable region was the last structural addition to the molecular repertoire of evolving tRNA substructures. Electronic Supplementary Material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.