Phylogenomics clarifies biogeographic and evolutionary history, and conservation status of West Indian tremblers and thrashers (Aves: Mimidae)

Publication date: Available online 15 April 2019Source: Molecular Phylogenetics and EvolutionAuthor(s): Jeffrey M. DaCosta, Matthew J. Miller, Jennifer L. Mortensen, J. Michael Reed, Robert L. Curry, Michael D. SorensonAbstractThe West Indian avifauna has provided fundamental insights into island biogeography, taxon cycles, and the evolution of avian behavior. Our interpretations, however, should rely on robust hypotheses of evolutionary relationships and consistent conclusions about taxonomic status in groups with many endemic island populations. Here we present a phylogenetic study of the West Indian thrashers, tremblers, and allies, an assemblage of at least 5 species found on 29 islands, including what is considered the Lesser Antilles’ only avian radiation. We improve on previous phylogenetic studies of this group by using double-digest restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq) to broadly sample loci scattered across the nuclear genome. A variety of analyses, based on either nucleotide variation in 2,223 loci recovered in all samples or at 13,282 loci confidently scored as present or absent in all samples, converged on a single well-supported phylogenetic hypothesis. Results indicate that the resident West Indian taxa form a monophyletic group, exclusive of the Neotropical–Nearctic migratory Gray Catbird Dumetella carolinensis, which breeds in North America; this outcome differs from earlier studies suggesting that Gray Catbird was nested within a clade ...
Source: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution - Category: Molecular Biology Source Type: research