Chapter 12 - Molecular Phylogeny of the Fundulidae (Teleostei, Cyprinodontiformes) Based on the Cytochrome b Gene

Abstract

This chapter gives an overview of the major phylogenetic issues relevant to the Fundulidae family and presents molecular data that addresses some of these issues. It presents sequence data from all fundulid genera and one outgroup, Profundulus, and discusses the phylogenetic implications derived from these results. Fundulids have been the subject of several conflicting phylogenetic analyses making them a system of choice for molecular studies. Hypotheses based on morphology, behavior, and allozymic studies can be compared with molecular data, and the differences can be statistically tested. It further evaluates phylogenetic relationships and the results obtained from this evaluation address some important questions. The West Coast Fundulus species, previously assigned to the “other species” group, seems to form a monophyletic sister clade to all other fundulids. For both species the branch length is less than the average branch length of other taxa making this possibility unlikely. If West Coast Fundulus is a sister clade to all other Fundulidae, as data suggest, some taxonomic revisions concerning these two species may have to be considered.