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The Opiliones family Neopilionidae is restricted to the terranes of the former temperate Gondwana: South America, Africa, Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand. Despite decades of morphological study of this unique fauna, it has been difficult reconciling the classic species of the group (some described over a century ago) with recent cladistic morphological work and previous molecular work. Here we attempted to investigate the pattern and timing of diversification of Neopilionidae by sampling across the distribution range of the family and sequencing three markers commonly used in Sanger-based approaches (18S rRNA, 28S rRNA and cytochrome-c oxidase subunit I). We recovered a well-supported and stable clade including Ballarra (an Australian ballarrine) and the Enantiobuninae from South America, Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand, but excluding Vibone (a ballarrine from South Africa). We further found a division between West and East Gondwana, with the South American Thrasychirus/Thrasychiroides always being sister group to an Australian–Zealandian (i.e. Australia + New Zealand + New Caledonia) clade. Resolution of the Australian–Zealandian taxa was analysis-dependent, but some analyses found Martensopsalis, from New Caledonia, as the sister group to an Australian–New Zealand clade. Likewise, the species from New Zealand formed a clade in some analyses, but Mangatangi often came out as a separate lineage from the remaining species. However, the Australian taxa never constituted a monophyletic group, with Ballarra always segregating from the remaining Australian species, which in turn constituted 1–3 clades, depending on the analysis. Our results identify several generic inconsistencies, including the possibility of Thrasychiroides nested within Thrasychirus, Forsteropsalis being paraphyletic with respect to Pantopsalis, and multiple lineages of Megalopsalis in Australia. In addition, the New Zealand Megalopsalis need generic reassignment: Megalopsalis triascuta will require its own genus and M. turneri is here transferred to Forsteropsalis, as Forsteropsalis turneri (Marples, 1944), comb. nov.
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Reappraising the evolutionary history of the largest known gecko, the presumably extinct Hoplodactylus delcourti, via high-throughput sequencing of archival DNA
Abstract Hoplodactylus delcourti is a presumably extinct species of diplodactylid gecko known only from a single specimen of unknown provenance. It is by far the largest known gekkotan, approximately 50% longer than the next largest-known species. It has been considered a member of the New Zealand endemic genus Hoplodactylus based on external morphological features including shared toe pad structure. We obtained DNA from a bone sample of the only known specimen to generate high-throughput sequence data suitable for phylogenetic analysis of its evolutionary history. Complementary sequence data were obtained from a broad sample of diplodactylid geckos. Our results indicate that the species is not most closely related to extant Hoplodactylus or any other New Zealand gecko. Instead, it is a member of a clade whose living species are endemic to New Caledonia. Phylogenetic comparative analyses indicate that the New Caledonian diplodactylid clade has evolved significantly more disparate body sizes than either the Australian or New Zealand clades. Toe pad structure has changed repeatedly across diplodactylids, including multiple times in the New Caledonia clade, partially explaining the convergence in form between H. delcourti and New Zealand Hoplodactylus . Based on the phylogenetic results, we place H. delcourti in a new genus.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1657662
- PAR ID:
- 10445548
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Scientific Reports
- Volume:
- 13
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 2045-2322
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Synopsis Adhesive toe pads have evolved numerous times over lizard evolutionary history, most notably in geckos. Despite significant variation in adult toe pad morphology across independent origins of toe pads, early developmental patterns of toe pad morphogenesis are similar among distantly related species. In these distant phylogenetic comparisons, toe pad variation is achieved during the later stages of development. We aimed to understand how toe pad variation is generated among species sharing a single evolutionary origin of toe pads (house geckos—Hemidactylus). We investigated toe pad functional variation and developmental patterns in three species of Hemidactylus, ranging from highly scansorial (H. platyurus), to less scansorial (H. turcicus), to fully terrestrial (H. imbricatus). We found that H. platyurus generated significantly greater frictional adhesive force and exhibited much larger toe pad area relative to the other two species. Furthermore, differences in the offset of toe pad extension phase during embryonic development results in the variable morphologies seen in adults. Taken together, we demonstrate how morphological variation is generated in a complex structure during development and how that variation relates in important functional outcomes.more » « less
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This paper addresses the systematics of the New Zealand spiders of the family Malkaridae. Malkarids are small araneoid spiders that live primarily in the leaf litter and mosses of temperate and tropical wet forests in Australia and New Zealand, with the exception of a single species in southern South America and another in New Caledonia. We treat the New Zealand species of Malkaridae that are not members of the subfamily Pararchaeinae, a monophyletic group of 11 new species that we classify in 2 new genera (Tingotingo, gen. nov. and Whakamoke, gen. nov.) and a new subfamily (Tingotinginae, subfam. nov.). We describe, diagnose, illustrate and map the distribution of specimen records of these 11 new species of New Zealand Malkaridae: Tingotingo porotiti, sp. nov., T. pouaru, sp. nov., T. tokorera, sp. nov., T. aho, sp. nov., Whakamoke orongorongo, sp. nov.; W. tarakina, sp. nov.; W. guacamole, sp. nov.; W. hunahuna, sp. nov.; W. paoka, sp. nov.; W. heru, sp. nov.; and W. rakiura, sp. nov. We also treat the phylogenetic relationships of Malkaridae and use the results of our previous work on the molecular phylogeny of Araneoidea as the bases for the classification of the family. Tingotingo, gen. nov. and Whakamoke, gen. nov. are sister clades. Tingotinginae, subfam. nov. is the sister group of the Malkarinae plus Pararchaeinae clade. We further hypothesise and discuss the morphological synapomorphies of Malkaridae, Tingotinginae, subfam. nov. and the two new genera.more » « less
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Several species of geckos of the genus Lepidodactylus are endemic to the Solomon Islands and very poorly known. I redescribe one of these, L. flaviocularis, from Guadalcanal, based on examination of a second, newly obtained specimen and quantification of diagnostically useful features of the digits. I also describe a closely related new species from nearby Makira Island in the southern Solomon Islands. Both species are distinguished by their large number of undivided subdigital lamellae, extensive toe webbing, and a continuous row of enlarged precloacal/femoral scales. The new species is distinguished from L. flaviocularis by a number of scalational features and the color of the circumorbial scales. Both species are inhabitants of interior forest, and it remains uncertain whether they are naturally rare, rare due to interactions with invasive species, or simply have cryptic ecological habits, though the last seems most likely. Current evidence for both species is consistent with the taxon-cycle hypothesis, which posits ecological displacement to inland habitats of ancient island inhabitants by newer colonizers, but this remains to be critically tested. The limited pool of specimens available for both species necessitates assessing the IUCN conservation status of each as Data Deficient.more » « less
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-35210-8
