Phylogenetic Analysis Of Genera Research Articles

Cambrian rhynchonelliform nisusioid brachiopods: phylogeny and distribution

AbstractA comprehensive review and phylogenetic analysis of genera and species presently assigned to the rhynchonelliform superfamily Nisusioidea and family Nisusiidae suggests that this short‐lived but important group of brachiopods first appeared in peri‐Gondwana during the second half of the Cambrian Series 2, before going extinct by the end of Drumian times. Nisusiides achieved their maximum morphological disparity and geographical distribution during the Wuliuan Age, and Laurentia was probably the major centre of their dispersal. A new phylogenetic analysis suggests an early separation of the lineages of spinose and non‐spinose nisusiids. The non‐spinose nisusiids probably evolved in Laurentia by the end of Cambrian Series 4. The new nisusiid genus Bellistrophia is described. The new species Nisusia multicostata represents the first documented rhynchonelliform (kutorginide) brachiopod from the Miaolingian (Drumian) of the Alborz Mountains, Iran.

A new species of the tetralophodont amebelodontineKonobelodonLambert, 1990 (Proboscidea, Mammalia) from the Late Miocene of China

ABSTRACT Here we describe a new species of Konobelodon Lambert, 1990 — a poorly known tetralophodont shovel-tusked proboscidean — from the Late Miocene of the Linxia Basin, China. Detailed osteological anatomies of skulls, teeth, and partial postcranial bones of the new taxon, Konobelodon robustus n. sp., are described and detailed morphological comparisons with the other species of Konobelodon (K. atticus (Wagner, 1857) = Mastodon grandincisivus, Schlesinger 1917, and K. britti (Lambert, 1990)) and other gomphotheres are conducted. The skull and jaw-closing muscles of a juvenile individual of the new species are reconstructed and the body mass is estimated based on its limb bones. Phylogenetic analysis of genera within Elephantimorpha results in three most parsimonious trees, of which two support a sister-group relationship between Konobelodon and Platybelodon, within a monophyletic Amebelodontinae. The new results enhance our knowledge on the anatomy and phylogeny of Konobelodon, and indicate pronounced...

Phylogeny of Melaleuca, Callistemon, and Related Genera of the Beaufortia Suballiance (Myrtaceae) Based on 5S and ITS-1 Spacer Regions of nrDNA

A phylogenetic analysis of genera within the informal suballiance Beaufortia (family Myrtaceae), largely endemic to Australia and New Caledonia, is presented based on separate and combined data sets for 5S and ITS-1 spacer regions of nuclear ribosomal DNA. The two sets were not in conflict but the 5S data set was more informative. Data were analysed using conventional parsimony, jackknife parsimony, and three-item parsimony analyses. Three-item analysis gave more resolved trees than conventional parsimony analysis. The Beaufortia suballiance includes two major clades, with all Australian representatives of Callistemon (shown to be monophyletic) and most Australian representatives of Melaleuca forming one of these. The sister clade comprises a well-defined group of endemic New Caledonian taxa (classified as Callistemon and Melaleuca), some Australian species of Melaleuca, a clade including the Western Australia/Northern Territory genera Beaufortia, Lamarchea, and Regelia, and a clade including the south-west Western Australian genera Calothamnus, Eremaea, Conothamnus, and Phymatocarpus. All molecular analyses sup port the monophyly of Conothamnus and of Regelia, genera for which a number of species were included. Three-item analysis of the combined data set supports the monophyly of Beaufortia. The findings have implications for both taxonomy and biogeography.

Phylogeny of Melaleuca, Callistemon, and Related Genera of the Beaufortia Suballiance (Myrtaceae) Based on 5S and ITS-1 Spacer Regions of nrDNA.

A phylogenetic analysis of genera within the informal suballiance Beaufortia (family Myrtaceae), largely endemic to Australia and New Caledonia, is presented based on separate and combined data sets for 5S and ITS-1 spacer regions of nuclear ribosomal DNA. The two sets were not in conflict but the 5S data set was more informative. Data were analysed using conventional parsimony, jackknife parsimony, and three-item parsimony analyses. Three-item analysis gave more resolved trees than conventional parsimony analysis. The Beaufortia suballiance includes two major clades, with all Australian representatives of Callistemon (shown to be monophyletic) and most Australian representatives of Melaleuca forming one of these. The sister clade comprises a well-defined group of endemic New Caledonian taxa (classified as Callistemon and Melaleuca), some Australian species of Melaleuca, a clade including the Western Australia/Northern Territory genera Beaufortia, Lamarchea, and Regelia, and a clade including the south-west Western Australian genera Calothamnus, Eremaea, Conothamnus, and Phymatocarpus. All molecular analyses sup port the monophyly of Conothamnus and of Regelia, genera for which a number of species were included. Three-item analysis of the combined data set supports the monophyly of Beaufortia. The findings have implications for both taxonomy and biogeography.

Marginal tooth-bearing bones in the lower jaw of the recent australian lungfish, Neoceratodus forsteri (Osteichthyes, Dipnoi).

Developmental studies of the Recent Australian lungfish, Neoceratodus forsteri, show that this species has two sets of functional tooth-bearing bones in the lower jaw of young hatchlings. These coincide with an early stage in the life history when the fish is strictly carnivorous. In N. forsteri, a paired tooth-bearing dentary and an unpaired symphyseal bone and tooth develop slightly later than the permanent vomerine, prearticular, and pterygopalatine tooth plates, which appear at stage 44 of development, and erupt with the permanent dentition between stages 46 and 48, when the hatchling first starts to feed on small aquatic invertebrates. At these stages of development, all of the teeth are long, sharp, and conical and help to retain prey items in the mouth. Disappearance of the transient dentition coincides with complete eruption of the permanent tooth plates and precedes the change to an omnivorous diet. Existence of a transient marginal dentition in this species of lungfish suggests that the presence of an apparently similar marginal dentition in adults of many species of Palaeozoic dipnoans should be considered in phylogenetic analyses of genera within the group, and when analysing the relationships of dipnoans with other primitive animals. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.