Long-distance Dispersal Events Research Articles

Diversity on a small scale - phylogeography of the locally endemic dwarf succulent genus Oophytum (Aizoaceae) in the Knersvlakte of South Africa.

Oophytum (Aizoaceae) is a locally endemic genus of the extremely fast evolving subfamily Ruschioideae and consists of only two formally accepted species (O. nanum and O. oviforme). Both species are leaf-succulent dwarf shrubs and habitat specialists on quartz fields in the Knersvlakte, a renowned biodiversity hotspot in the arid winter-rainfall Succulent Karoo Biome of South Africa. Quartz fields present specialised patchy habitats with an island-like distribution in the landscape. Oophytum oviforme grows in the south-western part, whereas O. nanum covers most of the remaining Knersvlakte. These species co-occur in a small area but within different quartz islands. We investigated the effects of the patchy distribution, environmental conditions and potential effects of paleoclimatic changes on the genetics of Oophytum. Phylogenetic and population genetic analyses of 35 populations of the genus, covering its entire distribution area, were conducted using four cpDNA markers and an AFLP dataset. These were combined with environmental data via a principal component analysis and comparative heatmap analyses. The genetic pattern of the Oophytum metapopulation is a tripartite division with a northern, central and western group. This geographical pattern does not correspond to the two-species concept of Oophytum. Only the western O. oviforme populations form a monophyletic lineage, whereas the central populations of O. oviforme are genetic hybrids of O. nanum populations. The highly restricted gene flow often resulted in private gene pools with very low genetic diversity, in contrast to the hybrid gene pools of the central and edge populations. Oophytum is an exceptional example of an extremely fast-evolving genus that illustrates the high speciation rate of the Ruschioideae and their success as one of the leading plant groups of the drought-prone succulent Karoo Biome. The survival strategy of these dwarf quartz-field endemics is an interplay of adaptation to diverse island habitats, highly restricted gene flow, occasional long-distance dispersal, migration, founder effects and hybridisation events within a small and restricted area caused by glacial and interglacial changing climate conditions from Pleistocene up to Present. These findings have important implications for future conservation management strategies.

How fast are viruses spreading in the wild?

Genomic data collected from viral outbreaks can be exploited to reconstruct the dispersal history of viral lineages in a two-dimensional space using continuous phylogeographic inference. These spatially explicit reconstructions can subsequently be used to estimate dispersal metrics that can be informative of the dispersal dynamics and the capacity to spread among hosts. Heterogeneous sampling efforts of genomic sequences can however impact the accuracy of phylogeographic dispersal metrics. While the impact of spatial sampling bias on the outcomes of continuous phylogeographic inference has previously been explored, the impact of sampling intensity (i.e., sampling size) when aiming to characterise dispersal patterns through continuous phylogeographic reconstructions has not yet been thoroughly evaluated. In our study, we use simulations to evaluate the robustness of 3 dispersal metrics - a lineage dispersal velocity, a diffusion coefficient, and an isolation-by-distance (IBD) signal metric - to the sampling intensity. Our results reveal that both the diffusion coefficient and IBD signal metrics appear to be the most robust to the number of samples considered for the phylogeographic reconstruction. We then use these 2 dispersal metrics to compare the dispersal pattern and capacity of various viruses spreading in animal populations. Our comparative analysis reveals a broad range of IBD patterns and diffusion coefficients mostly reflecting the dispersal capacity of the main infected host species but also, in some cases, the likely signature of rapid and/or long-distance dispersal events driven by human-mediated movements through animal trade. Overall, our study provides key recommendations for the use of lineage dispersal metrics to consider in future studies and illustrates their application to compare the spread of viruses in various settings.

Dynamics and ecology of a multi-stage expansion of Oropouche virus in Brazil.

In March 2024, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) issued an alert in response to a rapid increase in Oropouche fever cases across South America. Brazil has been particularly affected, reporting a novel reassortant lineage of the Oropouche virus (OROV) and expansion to previously non-endemic areas beyond the Amazon Basin. Utilising phylogeographic approaches, we reveal a multi-scale expansion process with both short and long-distance dispersal events, and diffusion velocities in line with human-mediated jumps. We identify forest cover, banana and cocoa cultivation, temperature, and human population density as key environmental factors associated with OROV range expansion. Using ecological niche modelling, we show that OROV circulated in areas of enhanced ecological suitability immediately preceding its explosive epidemic expansion in the Amazon. This likely resulted from the virus being introduced into simultaneously densely populated and environmentally favourable regions in the Amazon, such as Manaus, leading to an amplified epidemic and spread beyond the Amazon. Our study provides valuable insights into the dispersal and ecological dynamics of OROV, highlighting the role of human mobility in colonisation of new areas, and raising concern over high viral suitability along the Brazilian coast.

Population genetics of the freshwater red alga Batrachospermum gelatinosum (Rhodophyta) II: Phylogeographic analyses reveal spatial genetic structure among and within five major drainage basins in eastern North America.

The freshwater red alga Batrachospermum gelatinosum has a well-documented distribution spanning historically glaciated and unglaciated eastern North America. This alga has no known desiccation-resistant propagule; thus, long-distance dispersal events are likely rare. We predicted strong genetic structure among drainage basins and admixture among sites within basins. We predicted greater genetic diversity at lower latitude sites because they likely serve as refugia and the origin of northward, post-Pleistocene range expansion. We used 10 microsatellite loci to investigate genetic diversity from 311 gametophytes from 18 sites in five major drainage basins: South Atlantic Gulf, Mid-Atlantic, Ohio River, Great Lakes, and Northeast. Our data showed strong genetic partitioning among drainage basins and among sites within basins, yet no isolation by distance was detected. Genetic diversity varied widely among sites and was not strictly related to latitude as predicted. The results from B. gelatinosum provide strong support that each stream site contributes to the unique genetic variation within the species, potentially due to limited dispersal and the prevailing reproductive mode of intragametophytic selfing. Simulations of migration suggested post-Pleistocene dispersal from the Mid-Atlantic. Batrachospermum gelatinosum potentially persisted in refugia that were just south of the ice margins rather than in the southernmost part of its range. Research of other taxa with similar ranges could determine whether these results are generally applicable for freshwater red algae. Nevertheless, these results from B. gelatinosum add to the growing literature focused on the patterns and genetic consequences of post-Pleistocene range expansion by eastern North American biota.

Museomics reveal origins of East African Pleophylla forest chafers and Miocene forest connectivity

Here we present a nearly complete species-level phylogeny including 23 of the 25 known species of the forest-dwelling herbivorous scarab chafer beetle genus Pleophylla (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Sericinae), based on the analysis of 950 nuclear genes (metazoan-level universal single-copy orthologs; mzl-USCOs). DNA sequences were obtained from freshly collected, ethanol-preserved samples and from dried museum specimens by target enrichment or genome shotgun sequencing. Alignment completeness of mzl-USCOs newly obtained here by target DNA enrichment of ethanol samples were very heterogenous and lower (29–62 %) than in Dietz et al. (2023a), while that of sequences recovered from dried samples was even lower (∼19 %). Alignment completeness of the sequences obtained from low coverage shotgun sequencing was highest (∼92 %), although the average coverage was much lower than for the target enrichment samples. We used the resulting phylogeny to reconstruct the historical biogeography of the group. To estimate a time-calibrated tree, we combined the mzl-USCO data of Pleophylla with a nucleotide alignment from an available transcriptomic dataset of Scarabaeoidea and used two different sets of secondary calibration points. Despite the problems associated with the capture rate of mzl-USCO sequences from museum specimens, we were able to infer a well-resolved phylogeny of the genus Pleophylla that also provided reliable estimates of the phylogenetic position of species for which we had little sequence data. Our study clearly identified South Africa as the geographic origin of Pleophylla. Timing and biogeographic history confirm a persistent fragmentation of forests since the Eocene. The occurrence of only one long-distance dispersal event from southern Africa to the Eastern African Arc even during the Miocene highlights the limited dispersal possibilities for these forest-adapted chafers, which do not seem to have had important northerly range expansions along hypothetical forest corridors during the Pleistocene.

Landscape Heterogeneity and Environmental Dynamics Improve Predictions of Establishment Success of Colonising Small Founding Populations.

In long-distance dispersal events, colonising species typically begin with a small number of founding individuals. A growing body of research suggests that establishment success of small founding populations can be determined by the context of the colonisation event and the new environment. Here, we illuminate the importance of these sources of context dependence. Using a spatially explicit, temporally dynamic, mechanistic, individual-based simulator of a model amphibian species, the cane toad (Rhinella marina), we simulated colonisation scenarios to investigate how (1) the number of founding individuals, (2) the number of dispersal events, (3) landscape's spatial composition and configuration of habitats ('spatially heterogeneous landscapes') and (4) the timing of arrival with regards to dynamic environmental conditions ('dynamic environmental conditions') influence the establishment success of small founding populations. We analysed the dynamic effects of these predictors on establishment success using running-window logistic regression models. We showed establishment success increases with the number of founding individuals, whereas the number of dispersal events had a weak effect. At ≥ 20 founding individuals, propagule size swamps the effects of other factors, to whereby establishment success is near-certain (≥ 90%). But below this level, confidence in establishment success dramatically decreases as number of founding individuals decreases. At low numbers of founding individuals, the prominent predictors are landscape spatial heterogeneity and dynamic environmental conditions. For instance, compared to the annual mean, founding populations with ≤ 5 individuals have up to 18% higher establishment success when they arrive in 'packed' landscapes with relatively limited and clustered essential habitats and right before the breeding season. Accounting for landscape spatial heterogeneity and dynamic environmental conditions is integral in understanding and predicting population establishment and species colonisation. This additional complexity is necessary for advancing biogeographical theory and its application, such as in guiding species reintroduction efforts and invasive alien species management.

Repeated migration, interbreeding and bottlenecking shaped the phylogeography of the selfing grass Brachypodium stacei.

Brachypodium stacei is the most ancestral lineage in the genus Brachypodium, a model system for grass functional genomics. B. stacei shows striking and sometimes contradictory biological and evolutionary features, including a high selfing rate yet extensive admixture, an ancient Miocene origin yet with recent evolutionary radiation, and adaptation to different dry climate conditions in its narrow distribution range. Therefore, it constitutes an ideal system to study these life history traits. We studied the phylogeography of 17 native circum-Mediterranean B. stacei populations (39 individuals) using genome-wide RADseq SNP data and complete plastome sequences. Nuclear SNP data revealed the existence of six distinct genetic clusters, low levels of intra-population genetic diversity and high selfing rates, albeit with signatures of admixture. Coalescence-based dating analysis detected a recent split between crown lineages in the Late Quaternary. Plastome sequences showed incongruent evolutionary relationships with those recovered by the nuclear data, suggesting interbreeding and chloroplast capture events between genetically distant populations. Demographic and population dispersal coalescent models identified an ancestral origin of B. stacei in the western-central Mediterranean islands, followed by an early colonization of the Canary Islands and two independent colonization events of the eastern Mediterranean region through long-distance dispersal and bottleneck events as the most likely evolutionary history. Climate niche data identified three arid niches of B. stacei in the southern Mediterranean region. Our findings indicate that the phylogeography of B. stacei populations was shaped by recent radiations, frequent extinctions, long-distance dispersal events, occasional interbreeding, and adaptation to local climates.

Key innovations and niche variation promoted rapid diversification of the widespread Juniperus (Cupressaceae)

The processes of forming lineages undergoing widespread radiations remain a knowledge gap that is fundamental to our understanding of the geographic distributions of species. Although early studies emphasized the importance of dispersal ability and historical migration events, key innovations that promote rapid diversification and/or adaptation to new habitats may also strongly influence distribution ranges. Juniperus is the second largest genus of conifers and is widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Here, we used phylogenetic, phenotypic, and climatic data to investigate the contributions of these processes to the wide distribution and rapid diversification of Juniperus. Combining a time-scaled phylogeny and macroevolutionary theory, we show that the key innovations of berry-like seed cones and dioecy promoted the rapid diversification of Juniperus and that increased dispersal ability promoted allopatric speciation. Ecological niches had significant divergence among different clades of Juniperus. Biogeographic results supported multiple long-distance dispersal events and niche variation that contributed to the modern range of Juniperus, while both phenotypic adaptation and ecological opportunity probably drove its distribution range. Our findings suggest that the current widespread distribution is likely the result of significant divergence driven by niche variation in which ecological opportunities from key innovation and phenotypic divergence.

Phylogenetic relationships and historical biogeography of silkmoths (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) suggest an origin in Southern Gondwana

Silkmoths (Bombycidae) have a disjunct distribution predominantly in the Southern Hemisphere and Asia. Here we reconstruct the phylogenetic history of the family to test competing hypotheses on their origin and assess how vicariance and long-distance dispersal shaped their current distribution. We sequenced up to 5,074 base pairs from six loci (COI, EF1-α, wgl, CAD, GAPDH, and RpS5) to infer the historical biogeography of Bombycidae. The multilocus dataset covering 20 genera (80 %) of the family, including 17 genera (94 %) of Bombycinae and 3 genera (43 %) of Epiinae, was used to estimate phylogenetic patterns, divergence times and biogeographic reconstruction. Dating estimates extrapolated from secondary calibration sources indicate the Bombycidae stem-group originated approximately 64 Mya. The subfamilies Epiinae (South America) and Bombycinae (Australia, Asia, East Palaearctic, and Africa) were reciprocally monophyletic, diverging at c. 56 Mya (95 % credibility interval: 66–46 Mya). The ‘basal’ lineage of Bombycinae — Gastridiota + Elachyophtalma — split from the rest of Bombycinae c. 53 Mya (95 % credibility interval: 63–43 Mya). Gastridiota is a monobasic genus with a relictual distribution in subtropical forests of eastern Australia. The Oriental and African genera comprised a monophyletic group: the Oriental region was inferred to have been colonized from a long-distance dispersal event from Australia to South-East Asia c. 53 Mya or possibly later (c. 36–26 Mya); Africa was subsequently colonized by dispersal from Asia c. 16 Mya (95 % credibility interval: 21–12 Mya). Based on the strongly supported phylogenetic relationships and estimates of divergence times, we conclude that Bombycidae had its origin in the fragment of Southern Gondwana consisting of Australia, Antarctica and South America during the Paleocene. The disjunction between South America (Epiinae) and Australia (Bombycinae) is best explained by vicariance in the Eocene, whereas the disjunct distribution in Asia and Africa is best explained by more recent dispersal events.

Plastid phylogenomics clarifies broad-level relationships in Bulbophyllum (Orchidaceae) and provides insights into range evolution of Australasian section Adelopetalum

The hyperdiverse orchid genus Bulbophyllum is the second largest genus of flowering plants and exhibits a pantropical distribution with a center of diversity in tropical Asia. The only Bulbophyllum section with a center of diversity in Australasia is sect. Adelopetalum. However, the phylogenetic placement, interspecific relationships, and spatio-temporal evolution of this section remain largely unclear. To infer broad-level relationships within Bulbophyllum, and interspecific relationships within sect. Adelopetalum, a genome skimming dataset was generated for 89 samples, which yielded 70 plastid coding regions and a nuclear ribosomal DNA cistron. For 18 additional samples, Sanger data from two plastid loci (matK and ycf1) and nuclear ITS were added using a supermatrix approach. The study provided new insights into broad-level relationships in Bulbophyllum, including phylogenetic evidence for the non-monophyly of sections Beccariana, Brachyantha, Brachypus, Cirrhopetaloides, Cirrhopetalum, Desmosanthes, Minutissima, Oxysepala, Polymeres, and Sestochilos. Section Adelopetalum and sect. Minutissima s.s. formed a highly supported clade that was resolved as a sister group to the remainder of the genus. Divergence time estimations based on a relaxed molecular clock model placed the origin of Bulbophyllum in the Early Oligocene (ca. 33.2 Ma) and sect. Adelopetalum in the Late Oligocene (ca. 23.6 Ma). Ancestral range estimations based on a BAYAREALIKE model identified the Australian continent as the ancestral area of the sect. Adelopetalum. The section underwent crown diversification from the mid-Miocene to the late Pleistocene, predominantly in continental Australia. At least two independent long-distance dispersal events were inferred eastward from the Australian continent to New Zealand and to New Caledonia from the early Pliocene onwards, likely mediated by predominantly westerly winds of the Southern hemisphere. Retraction and fragmentation of the eastern Australian rainforests from the early Miocene onwards are likely drivers of lineage divergence within sect. Adelopetalum facilitating allopatric speciation.

Long-distance dispersal in the short-distance dispersing house sparrow (Passer domesticus).

The house sparrow (Passer domesticus) is a small passerine known to be highly sedentary. Throughout a 30-year capture-mark-recapture study, we have obtained occasional reports of recoveries far outside our main metapopulation study system, documenting unusually long dispersal distances. Our records constitute the highest occurrence of long-distance dispersal events recorded for this species in Scandinavia. Such long-distance dispersals radically change the predicted distribution of dispersal distances and connectedness for our study metapopulation. Moreover, it reveals a much greater potential for colonization than formerly recorded for the house sparrow, which is an invasive species across four continents. These rare and occasional long-distance dispersal events are challenging to document but may have important implications for the genetic composition of small and isolated populations and for our understanding of dispersal ecology and evolution.

Genetic insights of H9N2 avian influenza viruses circulating in Mali and phylogeographic patterns in Northern and Western Africa.

Avian influenza viruses (AIVs) of the H9N2 subtype have become widespread in Western Africa since their first detection in 2017 in Burkina Faso. However, the genetic characteristics and diffusion patterns of the H9N2 virus remain poorly understood in Western Africa, mainly due to limited surveillance activities. In addition, Mali, a country considered to play an important role in the epidemiology of AIVs in the region, lacks more comprehensive data on the genetic characteristics of these viruses, especially the H9N2 subtype. To better understand the genetic characteristics and spatio-temporal dynamics of H9N2 virus within this region, we carried out a comprehensive genetic characterization of H9N2 viruses collected through active surveillance in live bird markets in Mali between 2021 and 2022. We also performed a continuous phylogeographic analysis to unravel the dispersal history of H9N2 lineages between Northern and Western Africa. The identified Malian H9N2 virus belonged to the G1 lineage, similar to viruses circulating in both Western and Northern Africa, and possessed multiple molecular markers associated with an increased potential for zoonotic transmission and virulence. Notably, some Malian strains carried the R-S-N-R motif at their cleavage site, mainly observed in H9N2 strains in Asia. Our continuous phylogeographic analysis revealed a single and significant long-distance lineage dispersal event of the H9N2 virus to Western Africa, likely to have originated from Morocco in 2015, shaping the westward diffusion of the H9N2 virus. Our study highlights the need for long-term surveillance of H9N2 viruses in poultry populations in Western Africa, which is crucial for a better understanding of virus evolution and effective management against potential zoonotic AIV strain emergence.

Mating system induced lags in rates of range expansion for different simulated mating systems and dispersal strategies: a modelling study

Mismatches between current and potential species distributions are commonplace due to lags in the response of populations to changing environmental conditions. The prevailing mating system may contribute to such lags where it leads to mating failure at the range edge, but how active dispersers might mitigate these lags using social information to inform dispersal strategies warrants greater exploration. We used an individual-based model to explore how different mating systems for species that actively search for habitat can impose a filter on the ability to colonise empty, fragmented landscapes, and explored how using social information during dispersal can mitigate the lags caused by more constrained mating systems. The mate-finding requirements implemented in two-sex models consistently led to slower range expansion compared to those that were not mate limited (i.e., female only models), even when mating was polygynous. A mate-search settlement strategy reduced the proportion of unmated females at the range edge but had little impact on rate of spread. In contrast, a negative density-dependent settlement strategy resulted in much faster spread, which could be explained by a greater number of long-distance dispersal events. Our findings suggest that even low rates of mating failure at the range edge can lead to considerable lags in range expansion, though dispersal strategies that favour colonising more distant, sparsely occupied habitat patches may effectively mitigate these lags.

Phylogeographical evidence for historical long-distance dispersal in the flightless stick insect Ramulus mikado.

Exploring how organisms overcome geographical barriers to dispersal is a fundamental question in biology. Passive long-distance dispersal events, although infrequent and unpredictable, have a considerable impact on species range expansions. Despite limited active dispersal capabilities, many stick insect species have vast geographical ranges, indicating that passive long-distance dispersal is vital for their distribution. A potential mode of passive dispersal in stick insects is via the egg stage within avian digestive tracts, as suggested by experimental evidence. However, detecting such events under natural conditions is challenging due to their rarity. Therefore, to indirectly assess the potential of historical avian-mediated dispersal, we examined the population genetic structure of the flightless stick insect Ramulus mikado across Japan, based on a multifaceted molecular approach [cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) haplotypes, nuclear simple sequence repeat markers and genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms]. Subsequently, we identified unique phylogeographic patterns, including the discovery of identical COI genotypes spanning considerable distances, which substantiates the notion of passive long-distance genotypic dispersal. Overall, all the molecular data revealed the low and mostly non-significant genetic differentiation among populations, with identical or very similar genotypes across distant populations. We propose that long-distance dispersal facilitated by birds is the plausible explanation for the unique phylogeographic pattern observed in this flightless stick insect.

Point mutations including a novel Pro-197-Phe mutation confer cross resistance to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibiting herbicides in Lactuca serriola in Australia.

Control of prickly lettuce has become increasingly difficult for lentil growers in southern Australia due to widespread resistance to common herbicides, a lack of alternative herbicide options, and prolific production of highly mobile seed. This study aimed to quantify ALS-inhibiting herbicide resistance in the Mid North (MN) and Yorke Peninsula (YP) of South Australia, characterise the resistance mutations present, and investigate population structure and gene flow in this species. Resistance was identified in all populations tested, with average survival of 92% to chlorsulfuron and 95% to imazamox + imazapyr. Five different amino acid substitutions were identified at Proline-197 of the ALS gene. There was no significant difference in the LD50 between plants with these five different substitutions when treated with metsulfuron-methyl, however, imidazolinone resistance level was higher in plants with a phenylalanine substitution and lower in plants with a serine. Population structure based on 701 SNPs and 271 individuals provided evidence for both the independent evolution of the same mutation in different populations, as well as frequent short to medium distance dispersal accompanied by occasional long-distance dispersal events. The overall inbreeding coefficient (FIS ) was calculated at 0.5174, indicating an intermediate level of outcrossing despite the cross-pollination experiment showing only low outcrossing. In the structure analyses, most individuals from YP were assigned to a single cluster, whereas most individuals from MN were assigned 50% to each of two clusters, indicating some genetic differences between these two regions, but also evidence for dispersal between them. Use of imidazolinone herbicides has selected for mutations conferring higher levels of resistance, such as the Pro-197-Phe mutation, and resulted in further spread of resistance in this species. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

First dated phylogenetic reconstruction of the genus Tamarix (Tamaricaceae): biogeographical implications and hybridization processes in the Mediterranean Basin

Abstract The genus Tamarix comprises trees and shrubs that grow mainly in saline habitats. Previous phylogenetic analyses have shown incongruence between different gene trees, which suggest that hybridization processes might have been present in the past. However, the complex pattern of colonization of the Western Mediterranean region has yet to be understood, and no dated phylogeny that reconciles the different gene trees is currently available. The objectives of the study are: (i) to reconstruct the first dated species tree of the genus Tamarix from previously published data, (ii) to evaluate the occurrence of past hybridization, and (iii) to discuss biogeographical implications, mainly focused on the Mediterranean Basin. Our results show that the separation between Tamarix and Myricaria occurred 28.49 Mya, and the crown age of the genus Tamarix is dated at 16.65 Mya. Past hybridization processes might be present in three species: Tamarix amplexicaulis, Tamarix canariensis, and Tamarix minoa. Various colonization events are probable in the Western Mediterranean: a first colonization in the Early Miocene, Tamarix africana during the Late Miocene, and Tamarix boveana and Tamarix gallica during the Pleistocene. In addition, the genus Tamarix migrated to south-western Africa around 5.8 Mya, probably through an ancient arid African corridor, or a long-distance dispersal event.

Climatic Niche Dynamics of the Astereae Lineage and Haplopappus Species Distribution following Amphitropical Long-Distance Dispersal.

The tribe Astereae (Asteraceae) displays an American Amphitropical Disjunction. To understand the eco-evolutionary dynamics associated with a long-distance dispersal event and subsequent colonization of extratropical South America, we compared the climatic and geographic distributions of South American species with their closest North American relatives, focusing on the diverse South American Astereae genus, Haplopappus. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that two South American genera are closely related to seven North American genera. The climatic niche overlap (D = 0.5) between South and North America exhibits high stability (0.89), low expansion (0.12), and very low unfilling (0.04). The distribution of the North American species predicted the climatic and geographic space occupied by the South American species. In central Chile, Haplopappus showed a non-random latitudinal gradient in species richness, with Mediterranean climate variables mainly explaining the variation. Altitudinal patterns indicated peak richness at 600 m, declining at lower and higher elevations. These findings support climatic niche conservatism in shaping Haplopappus species distribution and diversity. Two major endemism zones were identified in central Chile and the southern region, with a transitional zone between Mediterranean and Temperate macro-bioclimates. Our results indicate strong niche conservatism following long-distance dispersal and slight niche expansion due to unique climatic variables in each hemisphere.

EuDiS - A comprehensive database of the seed dispersal syndromes of the European flora.

Seed dispersal is a critical process in plant colonisation and demography. Fruits and seeds can be transported by several vectors (typically animals, wind and water), which may have exerted strong selective pressures on plant's morphological traits. The set of traits that favour dispersal by a specific vector have been historically considered as seed dispersal syndromes. As seed dispersal syndromes have a great potential to predict how seeds move (i.e. the relative importance of the standard mechanisms of seed dispersal), they have attracted the attention of naturalists and researchers for centuries. However, given that observations of actual dispersal events and colonisation are seldom reported, there is still much confusion in current studies failing to properly discriminate between seed dispersal syndromes (i.e. sets of traits that favour a particular mechanism) and actual seed dispersal (i.e. the vector that moves a given seed in one dispersal event). This distinction is important because the presence of any seed dispersal syndrome does not preclude the seed being occasionally dispersed by other non-standard mechanisms (i.e. different from the one predicted). Similarly, the absence of seed dispersal syndromes does not prevent seeds from being dispersed. The correct coding of seed dispersal syndromes thus requires a systematic and evolutive, rather than a phenomenological approach. Unfortunately, such approach has rarely been implemented at a community-level and no comprehensive datasets of seed dispersal syndromes are yet available for any entire flora. This database contains categorisation of the native European flora into eight seed dispersal syndromes. Information for a total of 9,874 species retrieved from the volumes of Flora Europaea were analysed. Earlier versions of this database, which only coded for the presence of four long-distance dispersal syndromes (endozoochorous, epizoochorous, thalassochorous and anemochorous diaspores), were used in four previous studies. Here, we present a fully revised and expanded database, including the presence of four additional short-distance dispersal syndromes (myrmecochorous, vertebrate hoarding, freshwater hydrochorous and ballochorous diaspores), a nomenclatural update for all species and the codification of 416 additional species.Roughly half (51.3%) of the native European flora produce diaspores without traits clearly associated with facilitating seed dispersal. The other half (48.7%) of the European plant species produces diaspores with some specialised traits associated with seed dispersal, most of which (79.9%) with a potential to facilitate long-distance dispersal events. The most common diaspores are those with anemochorous (23.5%), epizoochorous (8.0%), endozoochorous (7.8%), myrmecochorous (7.2%), thalassochorous (2.3%), freshwater dispersal (2.1%), ballochorous (4.6%) and vertebrate hoarding associated traits (0.2%). Two-thirds (66.3%) of the European shrub and tree species have diaspores with some specialisation for biotic seed dispersal.

Phylogenomics illuminates the evolution of orb webs, respiratory systems and the biogeographic history of the world’s smallest orb-weaving spiders (Araneae, Araneoidea, Symphytognathoids)

The miniature orb weaving spiders (symphytognathoids) are a group of small spiders (<2 mm), including the smallest adult spider Patu digua (0.37 mm in body length), that have been classified into five families. The species of one of its constituent lineages, the family Anapidae, build a remarkable diversity of webs (ranging from orbs to sheet webs and irregular tangles) and even include a webless kleptoparasitic species. Anapids are also exceptional because of the extraordinary diversity of their respiratory systems. The phylogenetic relationships of symphytognathoid families have been recalcitrant with different classes of data, such as, monophyletic with morphology and its concatenation with Sanger-based six markers, paraphyletic (including a paraphyletic Anapidae) with solely Sanger-based six markers, and polyphyletic with transcriptomes. In this study, we capitalized on a large taxonomic sampling of symphytognathoids, focusing on Anapidae, and using de novo sequenced ultraconserved elements (UCEs) combined with UCEs recovered from available transcriptomes and genomes. We evaluated the conflicting relationships using a variety of support metrics and topology tests. We found support for the phylogenetic hypothesis proposed using morphology to obtain the “symphytognathoids'' clade, Anterior Tracheal System (ANTS) Clade and monophyly of the family Anapidae. Anapidae can be divided into three major lineages, the Vichitra Clade (including Teutoniella, Holarchaea, Sofanapis and Acrobleps), the subfamily Micropholcommatinae and the Orb-weaving anapids (Owa) Clade. Biogeographic analyses reconstructed a hypothesis of multiple long-distance transoceanic dispersal events, potentially influenced by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and West Wind Drift. In symphytognathoids, the ancestral anterior tracheal system transformed to book lungs four times and reduced book lungs five times. The posterior tracheal system was lost six times. The orb web structure was lost four times independently and transformed into sheet web once.

Cenozoic colonisation of the Indian Ocean region by the Australian freshwater-originating glassperch family Ambassidae (Teleostei)

We examined the phylogeny and biogeography of the glassperch family Ambassidae (Teleostei), which is widely distributed in the freshwater, brackish and marine coastal habitats across the Indo-West Pacific region. We first built a comprehensive time-calibrated phylogeny of Ambassidae using five genes. We then used this tree to reconstruct the evolution of the salinity preference and ancestral areas. Our results indicate that the two largest genera of Ambassidae, Ambassis and Parambassis, are each not monophyletic. The most recent common ancestor of Ambassidae was freshwater adapted and lived in Australia about 56 million years ago. Three independent freshwater-to-marine transitions are inferred, but no marine-to-freshwater ones. To explain the distribution of ambassids, we hypothesise two long-distance marine dispersal events from Australia. A first event was towards Southeast Asia during the early Cenozoic, followed by a second one towards Africa during mid-Cenozoic. The phylogenetic signal associated with the salinity adaptation of these events was not detected, possibly because of the selective extinction of intermediate marine lineages. The Ambassidae shares two characteristics with other freshwater fish groups distributed in continental regions surrounding the Indian Ocean: They are too young to support the hypothesis that their distribution is the result of the fragmentation of Gondwana, but they did not retain the phylogenetic signal of their marine dispersal.