Phylogeny of a trans‐Wallacean radiation (Squamata, Gekkonidae,Gehyra) supports a single early colonization of Australia

Abstract

Heinicke, M. P., Greenbaum, E., Jackman, T. R. & Bauer, A. M. Phylogeny of a trans‐Wallacean radiation (Squamata, Gekkonidae, Gehyra) supports a single early colonization of Australia. —Zoologica Scripta, 40, 584–602. The genus Gehyra (34 species) is rare among squamate reptile radiations in spanning continents, extending from southeast Asia to Australia and Polynesia. Among the family Gekkonidae sensu stricto, Gehyra is the only genus that is species rich in Australia. We performed molecular phylogenetic, divergence timing, and ancestral area analyses to investigate the evolutionary and biogeographic history of Gehyra. Phylogenetic analyses resolve Hemiphyllodactylus as the closest relative of Gehyra. Some data also link Perochirus to this group, but previously suggested relationships with other morphologically similar genera of geckos are not supported. Within Gehyra, three geographically discrete clades are recovered, respectively, concentrated in Asia, the Pacific islands and Australia. Ancestral area analyses suggest that Gehyra originated in Asia, with a single colonization of Australia occurring in the mid‐Cenozoic. This date places the time of Gehyra colonization prior to those of other Australian gekkonid geckos, but after the near‐endemic pygopodoid geckos, a Gondwanan relictual group. Based on these dates, times of origin may best explain relative differences in species diversity among Australian gekkotans. In contrast, although originating earlier, Gehyra is less diverse in Asia than in Australia. This pattern may be explained by the long‐term presence of many competing, ecologically similar genera in Asia (e.g. Gekko, Hemidactylus, Lepidodactylus), whereas nearly all pygopodoids in Australia (the only gekkotans present at the time of colonization of Australia by Gehyra) are ecologically distinct.

A new biogeographically disjunct giant gecko (Gehyra: Gekkonidae: Reptilia) from the East Melanesian Islands

“…All new sequences are deposited in GenBank (Appendix 1). Sequences were aligned with and compared to molecular data taken from Sistrom et al (2009) and Heinicke et al (2011). Tamura-Nei genetic divergences (Tamura & Nei 1993) were estimated in MEGA v. 6 (Tamura et al 2013).…”

“…In contrast with some other gekkonid radiations occurring in Melanesia (Oliver et al 2012), but like many trans-Wallacean radiations, diversity in this group is asymmetrically distributed -it is most speciose in Australia (Heinicke et al 2011;Doughty et al 2012;Sistrom et al 2013;, with a subsidiary centre of endemism in New Guinea (Oliver et al 2010. The recognized species diversity of Gehyra in East Melanesia and the South-west Pacific is currently low (Zug 2013), with one very widespread form that shows evidence of regionally distinctive subpopulations (Gehyra oceanica (Lesson, 1830)), one moderately sized form from Palau (Gehyra brevipalmata (Peters, 1874)) and two very large species: Gehyra vorax Girard, 1858 from Fiji, and the recently described Gehyra georgepotthaasti Flecks, Schmitz, Böhme, Henkel and Ineich, 2012 from Vanuatu and the Loyalty Islands.…”

Two new species of Gehyra (Squamata: Gekkonidae) geckos from the north-west Kimberley region of Western Australia

“…When morphological variation in chromosomes was fi rst investigated in the 1970s and 1980s, researchers found that chromosome types could vary widely within several species, indicating cryptic diversity (King 1979;Moritz 1986). However, recent progress using primarily DNA sequencing has been made towards delimiting species (Horner 2005;Sistrom et al 2009) and placing Gehyra in a global context (Oliver et al 2010b;Heinicke et al 2011). The genetic studies done from tissues of recently collected specimens, in combination with rocky Pilbara region to the south by the Great Sandy Desert .…”

Spots before the eyes: revision of the saxicoline geckos of the Gehyra punctata (Squamata: Gekkonidae) species complex in the Pilbara region of Western Australia

“…For morphology, phenotypic expression of colouration can be highly variable and convergent, with patterns fading in preservation leading to the loss of characters. Moreover, the body plan of Gehyra is highly conserved across this old and widespread group, with only subtle changes in shape across widely divergent lineages (Heinicke et al 2011;Ashman et al 2018;Doughty et al 2018;Kealley et al 2018). However, the benefit of working with morphology is that many potentially informative characters can be inexpensively assessed.…”