Eight in One: Hidden Diversity of the Bagrid Catfish Tachysurus albomarginatus s.l. (Rendhal, 1928) Widespread in Lowlands of South China

There is increasing evidence that species diversity is underestimated in the current taxonomy of widespread freshwater fishes. The bagrid species T. albomarginatus s.l. is mainly distributed in the lowlands of South China, as currently identified. A total of 40 localities (including the type locality), which covers most of its known range, were sampled. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on concatenated mtDNA and nuclear genes recover nine highly supported lineages clustering into eight geographic populations. The integration of molecular evidence, morphological data, and geographic distribution demonstrates the delineation of T. albomarginatus s.l. as eight putative species. Four species, namely, T. albomarginatus, T. lani, T. analis, and T. zhangfei sp. nov. and the T. similis complex are taxonomically recognized herein. Moreover, T. zhangfei sp. nov. comprises two genetically distinct lineages with no morphological and geographical difference. This study also reveals aspects of estimation of divergence time, distribution, and ecological adaption within the T. albomarginatus group. The unraveling of the hidden species diversity of this lowland bagrid fish highlights the need for not only the molecular scrutiny of widely distributed species of South China but also the adjustment of current biodiversity conservation strategies to protect the largely overlooked diversity of fishes from low-elevation rapids.

Download Full-text

Molecular phylogenetic and phylogeography of Soriculus nigrescens in southwest China

10.22541/au.161470351.19785260/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Haijun Jiang ◽

Changkun Fu ◽

Keyi Tang ◽

Fengjun Li ◽

Fei Xie ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Southwest China ◽

Ecological Niche Modeling ◽

Demographic History ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Divergence Time ◽

Species Status ◽

Putative Species ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

History Of ◽

Different Altitudes

The Himalayan Shrew belongs to the genus Soriculus, which is a monotypic genus. We investigated the phylogeographic patterns, speciation, divergence time, and demographic history of Soriculus nigrescens in southwestern China. A total of 128 samples from 29 regions were analyzed for both mitochondrial and nuclear genes. Phylogenetic analyses of the concatenated mtDNA and nuDNA data revealed three highly divergent lineages within the S. nigrescens. One group represented subspecies S. n. minors, another group represented subspecies S. n. nigrescens, which is made up of two Clades A and B. The species delimitation analyses, based on two methods, supported the species status of the two Clades of S. n. nigrescens. In addtion, it was found that individuals at different altitudes in Motuo were divided into two Clades. Bayesian skyline plotting analyses and ecological niche modeling also supported demographic and range expansions during the LGM for S. n. nigrescens. We propose that S. n. nigrescens appears to be composed of two putative species, and S. n. minor should be elevated to species status. Our study also suggested that climate change since the Miocene periods and the uplift of the QTP may have resulted in the diversification and speciation of S. nigrescens.

Download Full-text

Phylogenomic analysis and revised classification of atypoid mygalomorph spiders (Araneae, Mygalomorphae), with notes on arachnid ultraconserved element loci

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.6864 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. e6864 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Marshal Hedin ◽

Shahan Derkarabetian ◽

Adan Alfaro ◽

Martín J. Ramírez ◽

Jason E. Bond

Keyword(s):

Species Diversity ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Divergence Time ◽

Divergence Times ◽

Phylogenomic Analysis ◽

Early Tertiary ◽

The Family ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Probe Set

The atypoid mygalomorphs include spiders from three described families that build a diverse array of entrance web constructs, including funnel-and-sheet webs, purse webs, trapdoors, turrets and silken collars. Molecular phylogenetic analyses have generally supported the monophyly of Atypoidea, but prior studies have not sampled all relevant taxa. Here we generated a dataset of ultraconserved element loci for all described atypoid genera, including taxa (MecicobothriumandHexurella)key to understanding familial monophyly, divergence times, and patterns of entrance web evolution. We show that the conserved regions of the arachnid UCE probe set target exons, such that it should be possible to combine UCE and transcriptome datasets in arachnids. We also show that different UCE probes sometimes target the same protein, and under the matching parameters used here show that UCE alignments sometimes include non-orthologs. Using multiple curated phylogenomic matrices we recover a monophyletic Atypoidea, and reveal that the family Mecicobothriidae comprises four separate and divergent lineages. Fossil-calibrated divergence time analyses suggest ancient Triassic (or older) origins for several relictual atypoid lineages, with late Cretaceous/early Tertiary divergences within some genera indicating a high potential for cryptic species diversity. The ancestral entrance web construct for atypoids, and all mygalomorphs, is reconstructed as a funnel-and-sheet web.

Download Full-text

Disentangling relationships among eastern Mediterranean Cymbalaria including description of a novel species from the southern Peloponnese (Greece)

Plant Systematics and Evolution ◽

10.1007/s00606-020-01730-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 307 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Pau Carnicero ◽

Núria Garcia-Jacas ◽

Llorenç Sáez ◽

Theophanis Constantinidis ◽

Mercè Galbany-Casals

Keyword(s):

Eastern Mediterranean ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Taxonomic Revision ◽

Distribution Patterns ◽

Morphological Characters ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Morphological Data ◽

Long Distance ◽

Aegean Islands ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic

AbstractThe eastern Mediterranean basin hosts a remarkably high plant diversity. Historical connections between currently isolated areas across the Aegean region and long-distance dispersal events have been invoked to explain current distribution patterns of species. According to most recent treatments, at least two Cymbalaria species occur in this area, Cymbalaria microcalyx and C. longipes. The former comprises several intraspecific taxa, treated at different ranks by different authors based on morphological data, evidencing the need of a taxonomic revision. Additionally, some populations of C. microcalyx show exclusive morphological characters that do not match any described taxon. Here, we aim to shed light on the systematics of eastern Mediterranean Cymbalaria and to propose a classification informed by various sources of evidence. We performed molecular phylogenetic analyses using ITS, 3’ETS, ndhF and rpl32-trnL sequences and estimated the ploidy level of some taxa performing relative genome size measures. Molecular data combined with morphology support the division of traditionally delimited C. microcalyx into C. acutiloba, C. microcalyx and C. minor, corresponding to well-delimited nrDNA lineages. Furthermore, we propose to combine C. microcalyx subsp. paradoxa at the species level. A group of specimens previously thought to belong to Cymbalaria microcalyx constitute a well-defined phylogenetic and morphological entity and are described here as a new species, Cymbalaria spetae. Cymbalaria longipes is non-monophyletic, but characterized by being glabrous and diploid, unlike other eastern species. The nrDNA data suggest at least two dispersals from the mainland to the Aegean Islands, potentially facilitated by marine regressions.

Download Full-text

Morphological and molecular phylogenetic analyses of Zepedanulus ishikawai (Arachnida: Opiliones: Laniatores: Epedanidae) in the southern part of the Ryukyu Archipelago

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/tce.2021.42 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-28

Author(s):

Yoshimasa Kumekawa ◽

Haruka Fujimoto ◽

Osamu Miura ◽

Ryo Arakawa ◽

Jun Yokoyama ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Tree ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Divergence Time ◽

Morphological Characters ◽

Ryukyu Archipelago ◽

Divergence Time Estimates ◽

Time Estimates ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

History Of ◽

Polymerase Chain

Abstract Harvestmen (Arachnida: Opiliones) are soil animals with extremely low dispersal abilities that experienced allopatric differentiation. To clarify the morphological and phylogenetic differentiation of the endemic harvestman Zepedanulus ishikawai (Suzuki, 1971) (Laniatores: Epedanidae) in the southern part of the Ryukyu Archipelago, we conducted molecular phylogenetic analyses and divergence time estimates based on CO1 and 16S rRNA sequences of mtDNA, the 28S rRNA sequence of nrDNA, and the external morphology. A phylogenetic tree based on mtDNA sequences indicated that individuals of Z. ishikawai were monophyletic and were divided into clade I and clade II. This was supported by the nrDNA phylogenetic tree. Although clades I and II were distributed sympatrically on all three islands examined (Ishigaki, Iriomote, and Yonaguni), heterogeneity could not be detected by polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism of nrDNA, indicating that clades I and II do not have a history of hybridisation. Also, several morphological characters differed significantly between individuals of clade I and clade II. The longstanding isolation of the southern Ryukyus from the surrounding islands enabled estimation of the original morphological characters of both clades of Z. ishikawai.

Download Full-text

Descriptions of four new dextral land snails of the genus Camaena (Gastropoda, Eupulmonata, Camaenidae) from south China

ZooKeys ◽

10.3897/zookeys.996.54187 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 996 ◽

pp. 37-58

Author(s):

Pei Wang ◽

Mei-Ling Hu ◽

Jun-Hong Lin ◽

Hai-Fang Yang ◽

Xiao-Jing Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

South China ◽

Dna Sequences ◽

Reproductive System ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Land Snails ◽

Shell Morphology ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Living Environments

In this study, four new dextral camaenid from China are reported, based on shell morphology, reproductive system anatomy, and molecular phylogenetic analyses: Camaena funingensis Zhou, Wang & Lin, sp. nov., Camaena gaolongensis Zhou, Wang & Lin, sp. nov., Camaena maguanensis Zhou, Wang & Hu, sp. nov., and Camaena yulinensis Zhou, Wang & Hu, sp. nov. Detailed descriptions of the morphological characteristics including shells and genitalia, DNA sequences, and living environments of the four new species are provided, with further comparisons with congeners.

Download Full-text

Morphological and molecular evidence for the occurrence of Itajahya galericulata (Basidiomycota, Phallales) in India

Plant and Fungal Systematics ◽

10.2478/pfs-2018-0006 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 63 (2) ◽

pp. 39-44

Author(s):

Ravi S. Patel ◽

Ajit M. Vasava ◽

Kishore S. Rajput

Keyword(s):

South America ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Its Sequences ◽

Molecular Evidence ◽

Nuclear Rdna ◽

Gujarat State ◽

Rdna Its ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Rdna Its Sequences ◽

The City

AbstractItajahya galericulata (Phallales, Phallaceae) was previously reported from several countries in South America and Africa. Recently we found I. galericulata in the city of Vadodara, Gujarat State, India. To verify its identity we studied its morphology and performed molecular phylogenetic analyses using nuclear rDNA LSU and mitochondrial ATP6 loci. Here we also provide nuclear rDNA ITS sequences for the Indian collection, since up to now no sequences of this region have been available for I. galericulata in GenBank. This study furnishes the first evidence for the occurrence of I. galericulata in India and in Asia as a whole.

Download Full-text

The Phylogenetic Position of Crenea in the Lythraceae Based on Molecular Evidence, and the Transfer of Its Two Species to Ammannia

Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden ◽

10.3417/2021629 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 106 ◽

pp. 325-339

Author(s):

Shirley A. Graham ◽

Peter W. Inglis ◽

Taciana B. Cavalcanti

Keyword(s):

Morphological Character ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Phylogenetic Position ◽

Molecular Evidence ◽

Monophyletic Lineage ◽

The Family ◽

Mangrove Vegetation ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Globally Distributed

Crenea Aubl. (Lythraceae) is a ditypic genus of subshrubs occurring in mangrove vegetation on the coasts of northern South America. Phylogenetic analyses based on morphology have offered unresolved and conflicting phylogenetic positions for the genus in the family. This study presents the first molecular sequences for Crenea, from nrITS, rbcL, trnL, trnL-F, and matK regions. Molecular phylogenetic analyses find full support for Crenea within Ammannia L., a relationship not previously recognized. Ammannia is a globally distributed genus of terrestrial to amphibious herbs mostly occurring in freshwater marshes and wetlands. It was recently reconfigured based on phylogenetic evidence to include the genera Nesaea Comm. ex Kunth and Hionanthera A. Fern. & Diniz. The transfer of Crenea to Ammannia further extends the morphological, ecological, and biogeographical diversity of Ammannia and provides the final evidence defining Ammannia as a monophyletic lineage of the Lythraceae. A revised circumscription of Ammannia s.l. adds several new morphological character states and the first species in the genus restricted to mangrove vegetation. Two changes in taxonomic status are made: Ammannia maritima (Aubl.) S. A. Graham, P. W. Inglis, & T. B. Cavalc., comb. nov., and Ammannia patentinervius (Koehne) S. A. Graham, P. W. Inglis, & T. B. Cavalc., comb. nov. The new combinations are described, a list of exsiccatae examined is provided, and the effects of the reconfiguration to the morphology and biogeography of the genus are detailed.

Download Full-text

Morphological and molecular evidence for a new species of the genus Panolis Hübner, [1821] (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4565.4.6 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4565 (4) ◽

pp. 523

Author(s):

XUAN AN ◽

MAMORU OWADA ◽

MIN WANG ◽

HOU-SHUAI WANG

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Cytochrome C Oxidase ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Species Group ◽

Molecular Evidence ◽

Mitochondrial Cytochrome ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Lepidoptera Noctuidae ◽

A New Species ◽

I Gene

A new species of the genus Panolis Hübner, [1821], P. xundian sp. nov., is described and illustrated from southwestern China. It is well-defined morphologically by the male genitalia, with a well-developed pollex at the distal terminal of the sacculus and a broad, ventrally concave cucullus, the female corpus bursae with four long signum-stripes. Based on a 658 bp segment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene, we report the pairwise genetic distance of 2.5% from its allied species P. exquisita Draudt, 1950. Molecular phylogenetic analyses using three genes (2189 bp in total length) indicate that the new species belongs to the P. exquisita species group.

Download Full-text

Molecular data reveal unexpected species diversity of tapeworms of Australasian reptiles: revision of Kapsulotaenia (Cestoda: Proteocephalidae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4869.4.4 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4869 (4) ◽

pp. 529-561

Author(s):

ALAIN DE CHAMBRIER ◽

JAN BRABEC ◽

TOMÁŠ SCHOLZ

Keyword(s):

Species Diversity ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Relative Size ◽

Interdisciplinary Approach ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Lower Number ◽

Width Ratio ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Three New Species ◽

Australasian Region

Species diversity and interrelationships of tapeworms of the genus Kapsulotaenia Freze, 1963 (Proteocephalidae: Acanthotaeniinae), parasites of lizards, especially monitors (Varanus spp.) in the Australasian region, were re-assessed using an interdisciplinary approach. Molecular phylogenetic analyses of newly characterized lsrDNA and cox1 sequences confirmed monophyly of the genus, which is typified by the presence of eggs in capsules, and also indicated a strict (oioxenous) level of host specificity of its species thus revealing unexpected species diversity. Diagnoses of insufficiently described species were amended based on a study of the types and freshly collected specimens and, in addition, three new species were described. A list of ten species of the genus recognized as valid is provided, including illustrations of taxonomically important structures of poorly known taxa. Kapsulotaenia beveridgei n. sp. from V. rosenbergi in Australia differs from all other species of Kapsulotaenia but K. frezei and K. saccifera by having a lower number of testes and an absence of banana-shaped clusters of eggs. Kapsulotaenia cannoni n. sp. from V. gouldii can be distinguished from all species but K. chisholmae by a smaller scolex diameter and from all remaining species by its bigger cirrus-sac ratio and a bigger Mehlis’ gland/proglottid width ratio. Kapsulotaenia cannoni n. sp. differs from K. chisholmae, by the presence of an armed cirrus and a lower number of eggs in cluster (3–7 versus 8–13). Kapsulotaenia nybelini n. sp., which also occurs in V. gouldii, differs from K. tidswelli, K. frezei and K. beveridgei by having a greater number of testes, and it differs from K. varia by having a smaller relative size of the ovary. It differs from K. saccifera by the absence of banana-shaped cluster, and from K. pythonis by the number of eggs in clusters. Identification keys for all species of Kapsulotaenia and genera of the Acanthotaeniinae are also provided, together with SEM micrographs of three species, including two newly described species.

Download Full-text

Underestimated anuran radiations in the high Andes: five new species and a new genus of Holoadeninae, and their phylogenetic relationships (Anura: Craugastoridae)

Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society ◽

10.1093/zoolinnean/zlx020 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 182 (1) ◽

pp. 129-172 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Ignacio De la Riva ◽

Juan C Chaparro ◽

Santiago Castroviejo-Fisher ◽

José M Padial

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Species Diversity ◽

New Genus ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Distribution Patterns ◽

Southern Peru ◽

The Andes ◽

Close Relationship ◽

Molecular Phylogenetic ◽

Taxonomic Research

AbstractDespite recent efforts to accelerate exploration and species description, the diversity of high Andean frogs remains highly underestimated. We report high levels of species diversity in direct-developing frogs or terraranas inhabiting the wet puna and adjacent cloud forests of the Amazonian versant of the Andes in Bolivia and Peru. Descriptive evidence of external morphology, distribution patterns and molecular phylogenetic analyses support the existence of nine unnamed species in two clades, which represents a 30% increase in species diversity for those clades. The relationships of these species and their relatives in Holoadeninae are tested using nuclear and mitochondrial genes for 159 terminals representing the 11 genera in this subfamily and 25 species of previously unknown relationships. Our results corroborate species monophyly in all but three cases and support the monophyly of all Holoadeninae genera, albeit the position of some differs between analyses. We propose a new genus (Microkayla gen. nov.) for the clade containing all Bolivian species formerly in Psychrophrynella plus five species from southern Peru. The new genus is monophyletic and supported by anatomical synapomorphies. Psychrophrynella is re-diagnosed and redefined to include three species from the Andes of southern Peru. We discuss the taxonomic instability associated with Noblella and Psychrophrynella due to the fact that the type species of both genera share a number of traits that support a close relationship. We also name and describe three new species of Bryophryne and two of Microkayla from Peru, provide baseline data for the future description of four Bolivian species of Microkayla, and describe the unknown mating calls of two species. Our results support that the grasslands of the Amazonian versant of the Andes harbour a large diversity of species with small altitudinal and horizontal distributions that replace each other along a latitudinal axis. These species belong to different lineages whose closest relatives are forest species, often from distant parts of the continent. These patterns suggest that high Andean environments were colonized several times independently by species with forest ancestors and which radiated into a multitude of species with remarkably similar ecomorphologies. The extent of these radiations remains obscured by a still rudimentary knowledge of species diversity due to insufficient fieldwork and taxonomic research.

Download Full-text