The Trepobatinae (Gerridae) of New Guinea and surrounding regions, with a review of the world fauna. Part 6. Phylogeny, biogeography, world checklist, bibliography and final taxonomic addenda

Abstract

AbstractThe small waterstriders of the subfamily Trepobatinae have radiated extensively on New Guinea and surrounding archipelagos. The present contribution is the sixth in a series of reports dealing with this endemic fauna, and presents a cladistic analysis at the generic level for the subfamily, a biogeographic analysis, a world checklist, a complete bibliography, and final taxonomic addenda. The taxonomic appendix contains new distributional records for Stygiobates mubi Polhemus & Polhemus, and descriptions of the following new taxa: the new genus Talaudia to hold the previously described Andersenella nilsi Chen & Nieser from the Talaud Archipelago; Metrobatoides bifurcatus sp. n. from northern central Irian Jaya; and Iobates ivimka sp. n. from southern Papua New Guinea. The current cladistic analysis supports the previously proposed tribal classification, with the Metrobatini, Trepobatini, Naboandelini, and Stenobatini all resolved as discrete monophyletic groups. Our cladistic and biogeographic analyses also suggest that the current distribution of trepobatine genera in the New Guinea region has been strongly influenced by past tectonic events, most notably the accretion of island arc terranes derived from the Solomons and Halmahera arc systems. This has led to distinct areas of freshwater and marine endemism among the Metrobatini and Stenobatini in the areas surrounding Halmahera, the Vogelkop Peninsula, and northeastern New Guinea plus nearby islands. By contrast, the distribution of Naboandelini in the New Guinea region suggests a vicariance pattern with Australia across the Torres Strait.