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
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ales Bucek, Menglin Wang, Jan Sobotnik, Simon Hellemans, David Sillam-Dusses, Nobuaki Mizumoto, Petr Stiblik, Crystal Clitheroe, Tomer Lu, Juan Jose Gonzalez Plaza, Alma Mohagan, Jean-Jacques Rafanomezantsoa, Brian Fisher, Michael S. Engel, Yves Roisin, Theodore A. Evans, Rudolf Scheffrahn, Thomas Bourguignon
Summary: This study inferred the phylogenetic tree of Kalotermitidae using mitochondrial genomes and revealed that early-diverging kalotermitid lineages had disjunctions predating the breakup of Gondwana. Most of the disjunctions between biogeographic realms occurred in the last 50 million years, indicating that transoceanic and human-mediated dispersals have driven the global distribution of Kalotermitidae. The study also suggests that early-diverging kalotermitids had the ability to forage among multiple wood pieces.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 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)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Julia Bechteler, Alfons Schaefer-Verwimp, David Glenny, D. Christine Cargill, Karola Maul, Nicole Schuetz, Matt von Konrat, Dietmar Quandt, Martin Nebel
Summary: This study presents the first comprehensive molecular phylogeny of Metzgeria, showing its diversity and ancestral ranges. Results indicate that Metzgeria started diversifying in the Cretaceous and its biogeographic history was directly shaped by Gondwana vicariance between South America and Australasia.
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Juanita Rodriguez, Sarah Bank, Cecilia Waichert, Carol D. von Dohlen, James P. Pitts
Summary: This study investigates the global historical biogeography of the cosmopolitan spider wasp genus Ceropales using molecular phylogenetics and biogeographic analyses. Results suggest that Ceropales originated in Eurasia in the Miocene and dispersed to the Americas, Africa, and Australia. Colonization may have been facilitated by diversified hosts and a generalist parasitic lifestyle.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Michael Heads
Summary: A new model of regional history for New Caledonian biota is proposed, emphasizing the key processes of tectonic history, vicariance, and metapopulation dynamics. This method reveals the autochthonous, Mesozoic roots of many lineages and provides an alternative interpretation to the traditional models based on chance dispersal, adaptation, and radiation. While current methods of analyzing space and time in evolution have their flaws, they can be improved and integrated to provide a more comprehensive understanding.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Jose Barba-Montoya, Qiqing Tao, Sudhir Kumar
Summary: This study compared the accuracy, bias, and coverage probabilities of different rapid relaxed-clock dating methods. Among the methods tested, RelTime showed more accurate estimates, especially when evolutionary rates were autocorrelated or shifted convergently among lineages.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Jose Barba-Montoya, Qiqing Tao, Sudhir Kumar
Summary: We compared the accuracy, bias, and coverage probabilities of three rapid dating methods, and found that RelTime was consistently more accurate, particularly in cases of autocorrelated or convergent evolutionary rates. The 95% confidence intervals around RelTime dates showed appropriate coverage probabilities, whereas other methods produced rather low coverage probabilities due to overly narrow CIs of time estimates. Overall, RelTime appears to be a more efficient method for estimating divergence times for large phylogenies.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
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
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Tomas Flouri, Jun Huang, Xiyun Jiao, Paschalia Kapli, Bruce Rannala, Ziheng Yang
Summary: The multispecies coalescent model provides a natural framework for phylogenetic analysis of genomic data, allowing estimation of species divergence times and ancestral population sizes. Clock violation should be considered, and the relaxed-clock models can extract valuable phylogenetic information from gene-tree branch lengths.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
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
Ecology
Eduard Sola, Laia Leria, Giacinta Angela Stocchino, Reza Bagherzadeh, Michael Balke, Savel R. Daniels, Abdel Halim Harrath, Tsung Fei Khang, Duangduen Krailas, Biju Kumar, Mei-Hui Li, Abdolvahab Maghsoudlou, Midori Matsumoto, Niamul Naser, Benedicta Oben, Ori Segev, Matthias Thielicke, Xiaoli Tong, Goran Zivanovic, Renata Manconi, Jaume Baguna, Marta Riutort
Summary: Freshwater planarians of the genus Dugesia have a wide geographical range and their distribution is a result of both vicariance and dispersal events. The genus has an ancient origin in southern Gondwana and has experienced multiple colonization events in Eurasia from continental Africa via different dispersal routes. The study provides evidence of transoceanic dispersal in Dugesia.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2022)
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
Ben Bettisworth, Stephen A. Smith, Alexandros Stamatakis
Summary: Computing ancestral ranges using the DEC model of biogeography is time-consuming due to the large matrix exponential computation. This study introduces Lagrange-NG, a faster version of the Lagrange tool, which achieves significant speedups and allows analysis of datasets with a large number of regions. Lagrange-NG also improves coding quality standards compared to its predecessor.
SYSTEMATIC BIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Geography, Physical
Alycia L. Stigall
Summary: Biotic immigration events, in which organisms from one geographic region invade and become established in a new region, have had significant impacts on diversification patterns and processes throughout Earth history. The Richmondian Invasion is a well-studied example of such events, with multiple waves of invasion into the Cincinnati Basin during the Katian Stage. Detailed studies have documented the general patterns of this invasion and its effects on paleocommunities, establishing it as a coordinated invasion within the Invasion Hierarchy.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)