Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Caitlin M. Baker, Rebecca S. Buckman-Young, Cristiano S. Costa, Gonzalo Giribet
Summary: RNA sequencing and phylogenomic analysis were used to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships within the phylum Onychophora, revealing a well-supported phylogeny for the family Peripatopsidae with signals of Gondwanan vicariance. However, the family Peripatidae in the Neotropical region showed unstable relationships largely due to amino acid-translated sequence data. Discordant phylogenetic signal between genes may indicate a rapid, mid-Cretaceous radiation in the group.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Biology
Simone Fattorini
Summary: Earwigs have a higher diversity in the tropical regions of the southern hemisphere compared to the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. This distribution pattern is believed to be a result of the fragmentation of the Gondwana supercontinent and the collision between India and the Eurasian plate. The Himalayan orogenesis and colder temperatures have hindered the colonization of North America by South American earwigs.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
David T. Bilton, Manfred A. Jaech, Ignacio Ribera, Emmanuel F. A. Toussaint
Summary: This article presents a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study of the diverse moss beetle genera in the family Hydraenidae. The research suggests that these beetles originated in Africa and Madagascar during the mid-Cretaceous, and their biogeographic history in the Southern Hemisphere was shaped by both vicariant and dispersal processes as well as extinctions. The study also reveals multiple shifts in habitat occupancy across the phylogeny, including the independent origins of terrestrial and humicolous taxa in different regions.
SYSTEMATIC ENTOMOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Jason R. Ali, S. Blair Hedges
Summary: The discussion over the hypothesized mid-Cenozoic GAARlandia walkway in the Caribbean over the past three decades has been based largely on biological data due to a lack of geological and geophysical data from the Aves Ridge. By examining updated land-vertebrate colonization data and a new geological study of the region, the authors conclude that the GAARlandia hypothesis is geologically falsified, leading to a need for re-evaluation of many biogeographical scenarios proposed for the Greater Antillean biota.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marisol Castro-Torreblanca, David Espinosa, Alfredo Bueno-Hernandez, Isolda Luna-Vega
Summary: The historical relationships of nine areas of endemism in the tropical montane cloud forests were analyzed using a temporal cladistic biogeographical approach. Geographic barriers and climatic fluctuations influenced the fragmentation and distribution of the TMCFs over time. The results highlight the importance of geological events during the Miocene-Pliocene and climatic fluctuations during the Pleistocene in shaping the current distribution of TMCFs.
JOURNAL OF MOUNTAIN SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Timothy J. Gallaher, Paul M. Peterson, Robert J. Soreng, Fernando O. Zuloaga, De-Zhu Li, Lynn G. Clark, Christopher D. Tyrrell, Cassiano A. D. Welker, Elizabeth A. Kellogg, Jordan K. Teisher
Summary: Grasses are widely distributed and have significant impacts on Earth's climate, geochemistry, and biodiversity. By using DNA sequence data and fossil records, we can reassess the origins, timing, geographic spread, and diversification drivers of the grass family.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Weston L. Testo, Andre L. de Gasper, Sonia Molino, Jose Maria Gabriel y Galan, Alexandre Salino, Vinicius Antonio de Oliveira Dittrich, Emily B. Sessa
Summary: This study analyzed sequence data of the fern family Blechnaceae and found that the group originated in Eurasia in the late Cretaceous, and diversified mainly in the austral Pacific region during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Long-distance dispersal is frequent and asymmetrical, with Australia and tropical America being major source areas; climate-mediated vicariance shaped current distributions.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
William B. Ludt
Summary: Biogeographers have long been intrigued by the disjunct distributions of flora and fauna, particularly when species are present in temperate or polar regions of both hemispheres but absent near the equator. Researchers have proposed various hypotheses regarding the mechanisms responsible for this pattern and emphasized the importance of using an integrative approach in future studies.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Lily Shapiro, Greta J. Binford, Ingi Agnarsson
Summary: This study explores the phylogeography of the Caribbean and proximal mainland spiny orbweavers and suggests that overwater dispersal primarily from North/Central America has led to multiple independent colonizations of the region. The findings highlight the greater species richness of Micrathena in the Caribbean than previously known.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
G. Voelker, J. W. Huntley, J. Bryja, C. Denys, R. Sumbera, T. C. Demos, L. Lavrenchenko, V Nicolas, T. P. Gnoske, J. C. Kerbis Peterhans
Summary: Climbing mice in the genus Dendromus are distributed widely in Africa, with considerable variation in species and habitats occupied. Through a comprehensive survey, the systematics and biogeography of Dendromus have been assessed, leading to the recognition of three genera within the group. Molecular phylogenetic analysis and ancestral area reconstructions provide insights into the evolutionary history and distribution of these climbing mice species.
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Yiming Ma, Chungkun Shih, Dong Ren, Yongjie Wang
Summary: A new species of the Kempyninae insect family is described from Inner Mongolia, China, and a classification key to extinct and extant genera of the family is provided. Phylogenetic analyses of extant and fossil genera reveal the complex evolutionary scenario of Kempyninae, with three distinct clades and independent evolution of extant kempynines from their northern Mesozoic relatives. The study also suggests a northern and prepangean origin of Kempyninae.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
V Deepak, Simon T. Maddock, Rhiannon Williams, Zoltan T. Nagy, Werner Conradie, Sara Rocha, D. James Harris, Ana Perera, Vaclav Gvozdik, Thomas M. Doherty-Bone, Rachunliu G. Kamei, Michele Menegon, Jim Labisko, Charles Morel, Natalie Cooper, Julia J. Day, David J. Gower
Summary: The phylogenetic relationships of sub-Saharan African natricine snakes, including the Seychelles endemic Lycognathophis seychellensis, are not well-understood. Genetic analysis suggests a close relationship between L. seychellensis and mainland sub-Saharan natricines, with low genetic variation. The lineage of L. seychellensis is estimated to have dispersed to the Seychelles from mainland Africa approximately 43-25 million years ago, challenging the idea that it is a Gondwanan relic.
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Menglin Wang, Simon Hellemans, Ales Bucek, Taisuke Kanao, Jigyasa Arora, Crystal Clitheroe, Jean-Jacques Rafanomezantsoa, Brian L. Fisher, Rudolf Scheffrahn, David Sillam-Dusses, Yves Roisin, Jan Sobotnik, Thomas Bourguignon
Summary: Madagascar, due to its isolation, is home to unique plant and animal species, including various lineages of termites. This study used mitochondrial genomes to explore the historical biogeography of Neoisoptera, a termite lineage. The results suggest that Neoisoptera colonized Madagascar between 7 and 10 times independently during the Miocene, similar to its colonization of Australia.
Article
Ecology
Maria Esther Nieto-Blazquez, Lourdes Pena-Castillo, Julissa Roncal
Summary: The study of Caribbean Podocarpus showed that the genus colonized the Caribbean from the Andes during the Eocene to Oligocene, with Lesser Antillean species originating during the Oligocene. Despite new habitat opportunities, insular Podocarpus did not display higher diversification rates than continental taxa. Genotyping by sequencing proved useful in uncovering historical assembly processes in the Caribbean.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Laura Lagourgue, Frederik Leliaert, Claude E. Payri
Summary: This study examines the biogeographical processes and biodiversity patterns of the siphonous green algal family Udoteaceae. Through the analysis of a comprehensive dataset, the study reveals the origin, diversification, and distribution patterns of the family. The study identifies three centers of species richness: the Central Indo-Pacific, the Western Indian Ocean, and the Greater Caribbean, which have been shaped by various drivers.
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
