Phylogenetic relationships and systematics of the Amazonian poison frog genus Ameerega using ultraconserved genomic elements

Guillory, W. X. et al. (2020) Phylogenetic relationships and systematics of the Amazonian poison frog genus Ameerega using ultraconserved genomic elements. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 142, 106638. (doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2019.106638) (PMID:31586688)

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Abstract

The Amazonian poison frog genus Ameerega is one of the largest yet most understudied of the brightly colored genera in the anuran family Dendrobatidae, with 30 described species ranging throughout tropical South America. Phylogenetic analyses of Ameerega are highly discordant, lacking consistency due to variation in data types and methods, and often with limited coverage of species diversity in the genus. Here, we present a comprehensive phylogenomic reconstruction of Ameerega, utilizing state-of-the-art sequence capture techniques and phylogenetic methods. We sequenced thousands of ultraconserved elements from over 100 tissue samples, representing almost every described Ameerega species, as well as undescribed cryptic diversity. We generated topologies using maximum likelihood and coalescent methods and compared the use of maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods for estimating divergence times. Our phylogenetic inference diverged strongly from those of previous studies, and we recommend steps to bring Ameerega taxonomy in line with the new phylogeny. We place several species in a phylogeny for the first time, as well as provide evidence for six potential candidate species. We estimate that Ameerega experienced a rapid radiation approximately 7–11 million years ago and that the ancestor of all Ameerega was likely an aposematic, montane species. This study underscores the utility of phylogenomic data in improving our understanding of the phylogeny of understudied clades and making novel inferences about their evolution.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:WXG is thankful for funding from the Students United in Exploring, Preserving, and Researching Biodiversity (SUPERB) fellowship, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), USA (DUE-1564969). IDlR thanks the Spanish government for funding under project CGL2014-56160-P.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Whitworth, Dr Andrew
Authors: Guillory, W. X., French, C. M., Twomey, E. M., Chávez, G., Prates, I., von May, R., De la Riva, I., Lötters, S., Reichle, S., Serrano-Rojas, S. J., Whitworth, A., and Brown, J. L.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
Journal Name:Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:1055-7903
ISSN (Online):1095-9513
Published Online:03 October 2019
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc.
First Published:First published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 142:106638
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy

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