Miralinidae (Marsupialia: Phalangeroidea) from northern Australia, including the youngest occurrence of the family
Search citation statements
Paper Sections
Citation Types
Year Published
Publication Types
Relationship
Authors
Journals
Cited by 6 publications
References 8 publications
The current literature on marsupial phylogenetics includes numerous studies based on analyses of morphological data with relatively limited sampling of Recent and fossil taxa, and many studies based on analyses of molecular data that include a dense sampling of Recent taxa, but relatively few that combine both data types. Another dichotomy in the 9 2021) belonging to seven clades that are currently ranked as orders in the Linnean hierarchy (Table 1; Aplin and Archer, 1987;Wilson and Reeder, 2005;Burgin et al., 2018;Eldridge et al., 2019): Didelphimorphia (opossums), Paucituberculata (shrew opossums), Microbiotheria (the "monito del monte" Dromiciops gliroides), Dasyuromorphia (predominantly carnivorous forms such as quolls, antechinuses, dunnarts, the Tasmanian devil, the numbat, and the recently extinct thylacine), Diprotododontia (possums, gliders, kangaroos, wallabies, rat kangaroos, wombats, koalas, etc.), Notoryctemorphia (marsupial moles), and Peramelemorphia (bandicoots and bilbies).
The current literature on marsupial phylogenetics includes numerous studies based on analyses of morphological data with relatively limited sampling of Recent and fossil taxa, and many studies based on analyses of molecular data that include a dense sampling of Recent taxa, but relatively few that combine both data types. Another dichotomy in the 9 2021) belonging to seven clades that are currently ranked as orders in the Linnean hierarchy (Table 1; Aplin and Archer, 1987;Wilson and Reeder, 2005;Burgin et al., 2018;Eldridge et al., 2019): Didelphimorphia (opossums), Paucituberculata (shrew opossums), Microbiotheria (the "monito del monte" Dromiciops gliroides), Dasyuromorphia (predominantly carnivorous forms such as quolls, antechinuses, dunnarts, the Tasmanian devil, the numbat, and the recently extinct thylacine), Diprotododontia (possums, gliders, kangaroos, wallabies, rat kangaroos, wombats, koalas, etc.), Notoryctemorphia (marsupial moles), and Peramelemorphia (bandicoots and bilbies).
The current literature on marsupial phylogenetics includes numerous studies based on analyses of morphological data with relatively limited sampling of Recent and fossil taxa, and many studies based on analyses of molecular data that include a dense sampling of Recent taxa, but relatively few that combine both data types. Another dichotomy in the marsupial phylogenetic literature is between studies that focus on New World taxa, others that focus on Sahulian taxa. To date, there has been no attempt to assess the phylogenetic relationships of the global marsupial fauna, based on combined analyses of morphology and molecular sequences, for a dense sampling of Recent and fossil taxa. For this report, we compiled morphological and molecular data from an unprecedented number of Recent and fossil marsupials. Our morphological data consist of 180 craniodental characters that we scored for 97 species representing every currently recognized Recent genus, 42 additional ingroup (crown-clade marsupial) taxa represented by well-preserved fossils, and 5 outgroups (non-marsupial metatherians). Our molecular data comprise 24.5 kb of DNA sequences from whole-mitochondrial genomes and six nuclear loci (APOB, BRCA1, GHR, RAG1, RBP3 and VWF) for 97 marsupial terminals (the same Recent taxa scored for craniodental morphology) and several placental and monotreme outgroups. The results of separate and combined analyses of these data using a wide range of phylogenetic methods support many currently accepted hypotheses of ingroup (marsupial) relationships, but they also underscore the difficulty of placing fossils with key missing data (e.g., †Evolestes), and the unique difficulty of placing others that exhibit mosaics of plesiomorphic and autapomorphic traits (e.g., †Yalkaparidon). Unique contributions of our study are (1) critical discussions and illustrations of marsupial craniodental morphology, including descriptions and illustrations of some features never previously coded for phylogenetic analysis; (2) critical assessments of relative support for many suprageneric clades; (3) estimates of divergence times derived from tip-and-node dating based on uniquely taxon-dense analyses; and (4) a revised, higher-order classification of marsupials accompanied by lists of supporting craniodental synapomorphies. Far from the last word on these topics, this report lays the foundation for future research that may be enabled by the discovery of new fossil taxa, better-preserved material of previously described taxa, novel morphological characters, and improved methods of phylogenetic analysis. The Ektopodontidae are an enigmatic group of phalangeroid marsupials known from the late Oligocene to the Early Pleistocene of Australia. Although represented to date only by isolated teeth and several partial dentaries and maxillae, their highly distinctive dental morphology has allowed three genera and nine species to be distinguished. Here, we describe possibly the geologically oldest ektopodontid, Chunia pledgei sp. nov., from the Oligocene Pwerte Marnte Marnte fossil locality of central Australia. Phylogenetic analyses of Phalangeroidea, using 80 primarily dental characters framed by a molecular scaffold, support placement of the new taxon in the genus Chunia. The analyses failed to recover species of the genus Durudawiri in a monophyletic Miralinidae, indicating that they require systematic review. We also transfer the purported basal phalangerid Eocuscus sarastamppi to Miralinidae (Miralina sarastamppi comb. nov.). Additionally, the M1 specimens used to describe the Early to Middle Miocene miralinid genus Barguru, and three species therein, are reidentified as deciduous third premolars from early macropodoids. These findings imply that the Miralinidae are known only from the late Oligocene, whereas the oldest named phalangerids are from the Early Miocene. From a functional consideration of ektopodontid dental morphology, we infer support for prior suggestions of a granivorous and/or frugivorous diet for them. The relative stage-of-evolution expressed by the new taxon is comparable to those in the lower faunal zones of the Namba and Etadunna formations, which supports a late Oligocene age for the Pwerte Marnte Marnte assemblage. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:8881FF3A-4B9F-4085-A5C2-1BBF976CFB65 SUPPLEMENTAL DATA-Supplemental materials are available for this article for free at www.tandfonline.com/UJVP. scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health. customersupport@researchsolutions.com 10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614 Henderson, NV 89052, USA This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved. Made with 💙 for researchers Part of the Research Solutions Family.Dromiciops gliroides (the sole extant microbiotherian) and the three genera of modern paucituberculatans (Caenolestes, Lestoros, and Rhyncholestes, all members of the family Caenolestidae) are exclusively South American in distribution (Gardner, 2008). Fossil members of both orders are known from South America (
Dromiciops gliroides (the sole extant microbiotherian) and the three genera of modern paucituberculatans (Caenolestes, Lestoros, and Rhyncholestes, all members of the family Caenolestidae) are exclusively South American in distribution (Gardner, 2008). Fossil members of both orders are known from South America (
Contact Info
Product
Resources
