Abstract:The subtribe Anthroherponina form an iconic group of obligate cave beetles, typical representatives of the Dinaric subterranean fauna, which is considered to be the richest in the world. Phylogenetic studies within this subtribe are scarce and based only on morphological characters, which, due to troglomorphic convergence, are frequently unreliable. Moreover, morphological stasis and morphological polymorphism make classification of taxa difficult. To test if characters that have traditionally been accepted as… Show more
“…Although the sensilla have not been found in Hadesia by Njunjić et al. (), we confirm its presence in Hadesia vasiceki .…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 60%
“…Although Njunjić et al. () do not report the projecting sensilla in Hadesia , we confirm its presence in Hadesia vasiceki . Apical maxillary palpomere of (a) Rybinskiella magnifica (Cholevini), (b) Platycholeus opacellus (Leptodirini) and (c) Quaestus arcanus (Leptodirini).…”
Section: Resultssupporting
confidence: 47%
“…The presence of a set of projecting sensilla on the basal area of the distal maxillary palpomere is an almost unique feature of Leptodirini, except for its occurrence in Nargomorphus (and a possible reversal in Spelaeobates ). These sensilla have already been described in other leptodirines, namely in Closania , Sophrochaeta and Tismanella (Moldovan et al., ), and in Anthroherpon , Leptomeson and Graciliella (Njunjić et al., ). This condition is in contrast to the digitiform sensilla of the apical maxillary palpomere of most Coleoptera.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 67%
“…() in Closania , Sophrochaeta and Tismanella , and by Njunjić et al. () in Anthroherpon , Leptomeson and Graciliella , but not interpreted phylogenetically. Here we report the broad occurrence throughout Leptodirini and show the phylogenetic relevance of this derived character for the first time.…”
The current state of knowledge of the suprageneric relationships in Cholevinae is either derived from informal evaluations of putative synapomorphies or based on molecular studies with limited taxonomic sampling. Here we assessed the higher-level relationships in this subfamily based on a phylogenetic analysis of 97 morphological characters scored for 93 terminals, representing all tribes. Both parsimony and Bayesian analyses were used. The monophyletic origin of Cholevinae was corroborated, except for the unexpected inclusion of Leptinus in the implied weighting analysis. Eucatopini + Oritocatopini were retrieved as basal branches in the evolution of Cholevinae. The monophyletic origin of all remaining Cholevinae was confirmed, which is consistent with molecular evidence. Anemadini was non-monophyletic, in accordance with earlier hypotheses. Cholevini was rendered non-monophyletic by the uncertain inclusion of Prionochaeta and the consistent exclusion of Cholevinus. A close affinity of Ptomaphagini to Sciaphyini and Leptodirini was suggested, although the position of Sciaphyes remains uncertain. The phylogenetic hypothesis of Cholevinae provided here is the most comprehensive presently available. The list of characters shows that a substantial part of the data was obtained from the ventral side. This is a strong argument for a detailed pictorial documentation of the ventral body parts in taxonomic descriptions, in contrast to the common practice of only illustrating the dorsal habitus of the beetles.
“…Although the sensilla have not been found in Hadesia by Njunjić et al. (), we confirm its presence in Hadesia vasiceki .…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 60%
“…Although Njunjić et al. () do not report the projecting sensilla in Hadesia , we confirm its presence in Hadesia vasiceki . Apical maxillary palpomere of (a) Rybinskiella magnifica (Cholevini), (b) Platycholeus opacellus (Leptodirini) and (c) Quaestus arcanus (Leptodirini).…”
Section: Resultssupporting
confidence: 47%
“…The presence of a set of projecting sensilla on the basal area of the distal maxillary palpomere is an almost unique feature of Leptodirini, except for its occurrence in Nargomorphus (and a possible reversal in Spelaeobates ). These sensilla have already been described in other leptodirines, namely in Closania , Sophrochaeta and Tismanella (Moldovan et al., ), and in Anthroherpon , Leptomeson and Graciliella (Njunjić et al., ). This condition is in contrast to the digitiform sensilla of the apical maxillary palpomere of most Coleoptera.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 67%
“…() in Closania , Sophrochaeta and Tismanella , and by Njunjić et al. () in Anthroherpon , Leptomeson and Graciliella , but not interpreted phylogenetically. Here we report the broad occurrence throughout Leptodirini and show the phylogenetic relevance of this derived character for the first time.…”
The current state of knowledge of the suprageneric relationships in Cholevinae is either derived from informal evaluations of putative synapomorphies or based on molecular studies with limited taxonomic sampling. Here we assessed the higher-level relationships in this subfamily based on a phylogenetic analysis of 97 morphological characters scored for 93 terminals, representing all tribes. Both parsimony and Bayesian analyses were used. The monophyletic origin of Cholevinae was corroborated, except for the unexpected inclusion of Leptinus in the implied weighting analysis. Eucatopini + Oritocatopini were retrieved as basal branches in the evolution of Cholevinae. The monophyletic origin of all remaining Cholevinae was confirmed, which is consistent with molecular evidence. Anemadini was non-monophyletic, in accordance with earlier hypotheses. Cholevini was rendered non-monophyletic by the uncertain inclusion of Prionochaeta and the consistent exclusion of Cholevinus. A close affinity of Ptomaphagini to Sciaphyini and Leptodirini was suggested, although the position of Sciaphyes remains uncertain. The phylogenetic hypothesis of Cholevinae provided here is the most comprehensive presently available. The list of characters shows that a substantial part of the data was obtained from the ventral side. This is a strong argument for a detailed pictorial documentation of the ventral body parts in taxonomic descriptions, in contrast to the common practice of only illustrating the dorsal habitus of the beetles.
“…Even when disregarding the polyphyly of Anthroherpon that necessitated the erection of the new genus, Graciliella [ 65 ], our results only partly support the traditional, morphology-based, subdivision of the genus Anthroherpon into 7 species groups [ 32 , 66 ]. Our phylogenetic reconstruction shows that only the “ ganglbaueri ” and “ cylindricolle ” species groups are monophyletic, while all others show polyphyly.…”
The genus Anthroherpon Reitter, 1889 exhibits the most pronounced troglomorphic characters among Coleoptera, and represents one of the most spectacular radiations of subterranean beetles. However, radiation, diversification, and biogeography of this genus have never been studied in a phylogenetic context. This study provides a comprehensive evolutionary analysis of the Anthroherpon radiation, using a dated molecular phylogeny as a framework for understanding Anthroherpon diversification, reconstructing the ancestral range, and exploring troglomorphic diversity. Based on 16 species and 22 subspecies, i.e. the majority of Anthroherpon diversity, we reconstructed the phylogeny using Bayesian analysis of six loci, both mitochondrial and nuclear, comprising a total of 4143 nucleotides. In parallel, a morphometric analysis was carried out with 79 landmarks on the body that were subjected to geometric morphometrics. We optimized morphometric features to phylogeny, in order to recognize the way troglomorphy was expressed in different clades of the tree, and did character evolution analyses. Finally, we reconstructed the ancestral range of the genus using BioGeoBEARS. Besides further elucidating the suprageneric classification of the East-Mediterranean Leptodirini, our main findings also show that Anthroherpon dates back to the Early Miocene (ca. 22 MYA) and that the genus diversified entirely underground. Biogeographic reconstruction of the ancestral range shows the origin of the genus in the area comprising three high mountains in western Montenegro, which is in the accordance with the available data on the paleogeography of the Balkan Peninsula. Character evolution analysis indicates that troglomorphic morphometric traits in Anthroherpon mostly evolve neutrally but may diverge adaptively under syntopic competition.
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