The Mitochondrial Genomes of Aquila fasciata and Buteo lagopus (Aves, Accipitriformes): Sequence, Structure and Phylogenetic Analyses

Abstract

The family Accipitridae is one of the largest groups of non-passerine birds, including 68 genera and 243 species globally distributed. In the present study, we determined the complete mitochondrial sequences of two species of accipitrid, namely Aquila fasciata and Buteo lagopus, and conducted a comparative mitogenome analysis across the family. The mitogenome length of A. fasciata and B. lagopus are 18,513 and 18,559 bp with an A + T content of 54.2% and 55.0%, respectively. For both the two accipitrid birds mtDNAs, obvious positive AT-skew and negative GC-skew biases were detected for all 12 PCGs encoded by the H strand, whereas the reverse was found in MT-ND6 encoded by the L strand. One extra nucleotide‘C’is present at the position 174 of MT-ND3 gene of A. fasciata, which is not observed at that of B. lagopus. Six conserved sequence boxes in the Domain II, named boxes F, E, D, C, CSBa, and CSBb, respectively, were recognized in the CRs of A. fasciata and B. lagopus. Rates and patterns of mitochondrial gene evolution within Accipitridae were also estimated. The highest dN/dS was detected for the MT-ATP8 gene (0.32493) among Accipitridae, while the lowest for the MT-CO1 gene (0.01415). Mitophylogenetic analysis supported the robust monophyly of Accipitriformes, and Cathartidae was basal to the balance of the order. Moreover, we performed phylogenetic analyses using two other data sets (two mitochondrial loci, and combined nuclear and mitochondrial loci). Our results indicate that the subfamily Aquilinae and all currently polytypic genera of this subfamily are monophyletic. These two novel mtDNA data will be useful in refining the phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary processes of Accipitriformes.

Complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the Himalayan Griffon,Gyps himalayensis(Accipitriformes: Accipitridae): Sequence, structure, and phylogenetic analyses

“…For ND3 and COX3 genes, G. himalayensis has negative AT‐skew, while the other three species have positive AT‐skews. Apparent positive AT‐skew and negative GC‐skew biases were identified for all 11 PCGs (except for ND3 and ND4L) encoded by the H‐strand, whereas the reverse was detected in ND6 encoded by the L‐strand, which has been observed also in previous studies (Table ; Jiang et al, ; Liu et al, ).…”

“…The systematic taxonomic status among Falconiform taxa is rather complex and controversial (Jiang et al, ; Liu, Li, Du, & Liu, ). The family Accipitridae (hawks, eagles, and kites), with other four families (Pandionidae, Sagittariidae, Cathartidae, and Falconidae), was traditionally classified within the order Falconiformes (Cracraft, ; Haring, Kruckenhauser, Gamauf, Riesing, & Pinsker, ; Livezey & Zusi, ).…”

Eye Size, Fovea, and Foraging Ecology in Accipitriform Raptors

“…We used Pearson correlation to estimate the relation between corneal diameter and axial length. We used PGLS (phylogenetic generalized least square model using a Brownian motion model) [Freckleton et al, 2002] with SD-OCT data to estimate any relationship between corneal diameter and retinal or fo- Jiang et al [2015] with the family Cathartidae (Turkey vulture C. aura and Andean condor V. gryphus ) as an outgroup (online suppl. Fig.…”

“…The residual corneal diameter was used to test for any differences between predators and carrion eaters after controlling for body mass. The phylogeny for 59 out of the 97 species used was derived from Jiang et al [2015], and we repeated all analyses on these 59 species using PGLS (online suppl. Fig.…”

The mitochondrial genome of pin-tailed snipe Gallinago stenura, and its implications for the phylogeny of Charadriiformes

“…In the past decade, the number of sequenced mitogenomes have accumulated and these sequences have been widely used in biological research, especially when studying molecular evolution, genetic structure, and phylogeography [20–27]. Especially, a number of studies performed using mitochondrial genome sequences to elucidate avian phylogeny [21, 22, 28, 29]. …”