In the present study, we investigated the possible existence of new lineages of
peripatids through comparisons between known Neotropical species and specimens
obtained from two locations in Pará, a state in eastern Brazilian Amazonia using a
molecular approach based on sequences of the mtDNA genes COI, 16Sr RNA, and 18S RNA.
The analyses included also sequences of Asian and African taxa for a more systematic
understanding of the phylogenetic relationships within the group. The analysis of the
COI, 16S rRNA and 18S RNA sequences permitted the identification of three distinct
lineages (A, B and C) based on two different phylogenetic approaches (Bayesian
methods and ML). The three lineages presented here are completely distinct from all
other peripatid taxa so far defined by molecular data. The presence of specimens of
three independent onychophoran lineages occurring in sympatry in the Amazon basin was
confirmed in all the analyses, providing consistent support for the phylogenies
presented in this study. These findings reinforce the importance of the Amazon region
in the diversification of Neotropical peripatids, and indicate that onychophoran
diversity is much greater than previously thought, given that the number of taxa
found at a single site was equivalent to the total number of allopatric species
described for the entire region.
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