Evolutionary history of coastal tiger beetles in Japan based on a comparative phylogeography of four species

Abstract

To reveal the phylogeographical patterns of four species of coastal tiger beetles in Japan (Lophyridia angulata, Abroscelis anchoralis, Cicindela lewisii and Chaetodera laetescripta), we conducted phylogenetic and nested clade analysis (NCA) using the mitochondrial DNA sequences of two loci (COI and 16S rRNA), with specimens sampled from Japan and neighbouring countries. Abroscelis anchoralis and L. angulata have similar disjunct distributions in Japan. The NCA indicated past fragmentation involving three isolated areas of A. anchoralis. In contrast, local populations of L. angulata in Japan shared the same haplotype, indicating recent vicariance. Co-occurrence of haplotypes from several divergent clades in Japanese populations of Ch. laetescripta suggested ancient vicariance and subsequent intermixing of local populations. The tree topology of C. lewisii, with shallow branches and little geographical segregation of haplotypes between Japan and Korea or within Japan, suggested that the Japanese population was segregated from the Korean population only recently. Restricted gene flow, with isolation by distance, was inferred for various geographical associations of haplotypes for coastal tiger beetles in the NCA. Based on these phylogeographical patterns, coupled with a molecular clock approach, the evolutionary history of four species of coastal tiger beetles was deduced, with the additional consideration of the competitive relationships among those species. We also discuss the conservation of highly localized A. anchoralis populations in Japan, using the concept of evolutionarily significant units.

Comparative historical biogeography of Plateumaris leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in Japan: interplay between fossil and molecular data

“…Previous molecular phylogenetic analyses of Japanese insects (e.g. Tominaga et al, 2000; Satoh et al. , 2004; Sota et al.…”

Phylogeography of Semiterrestrial Isopod,Tylos granuliferus, on East Asian Coasts

“…Some authors have suggested a close relationship between the distribution patterns of populations and marine environmental factors, such as current activity, seawater temperature, and salinity (e.g., Hansen et al, 2007). However, several semiterrestrial coastal species do not show clear relationships between their distributions and local ocean currents (e.g., coastal tiger beetles: Satoh et al, 2004, Ligia spp. : Itani, 2000Hurtado et al, 2010).…”

Different phylogeographic patterns in two Japanese Silpha species (Coleoptera: Silphidae) affected by climatic gradients and topography

“…Because of the varying connections between islands, climatic fluctuations and associated vegetational changes during the Pliocene to the Quaternary, the historical biogeography of terrestrial animals on the Japanese islands may be complex and it has been a challenge to infer (e.g. Ohdachi et al, 2001;Satoh et al, 2004;Nagata, Kubota & Sota, 2007;Sota & Hayashi, 2007;Aoki, Kato & Murakami, 2008;Tomozawa & Suzuki, 2008).…”