Evidence from Australian mesic zone dung beetles supports their Gondwanan origin and Mesozoic diversification of the Scarabaeinae. Supplemental Material
Nicole L. Gunter
Geoff B. Monteith
Stephen L. Cameron
Tom A. Weir
10.6084/m9.figshare.5545159.v2
https://brill.figshare.com/articles/dataset/Evidence_from_Australian_mesic_zone_dung_beetles_supports_their_Gondwanan_origin_and_Mesozoic_diversification_of_the_Scarabaeinae_Supplemental_Material/5545159
The
evolution of dung beetles remains contentious with two hypotheses reflecting
Cretaceous and Paleogene origins driven by different methods. We explore
biogeographic evidence and phylogeographic origins against vicariance and
dispersal scenarios that attribute to the four elements of the Australian fauna
using a multi-gene approach. Maximum-likelihood and Bayesian analyses supported
the Australasian clade, composed of almost all Australian, New Caledonian and
New Zealand endemic genera (to the exclusion of <i>Boletoscapter</i>). Two
Australian lineages with east-west splits and few lineages with restricted,
non-overlapping distrbution were identified, and biogeography models provided
evidence that vicariance and founder event speciation are important processes
in the diversification of Australasian scarabaeines. Our phylogenetic results
are largely congruent with a mid-Cretaceous origin of the Australasian clade,
the tectonic history of Gondwanaland and climatic history of the Australian
continent, and provide compelling evidence that Australian dung beetles are a
relictual fauna whose history is linked to mesic zone fragmentation.
2018-03-12 15:10:09
biogeography
dispersal
evolution
Coleoptera
Scarabaeidae
scarab
Australia
Australasia
Evolutionary Biology
Zoology
Terrestrial Ecology
Evolutionary Biology not elsewhere classified