Evolutionary biogeography of Cnesterodontini (Teleostei: Poeciliidae): area relationships and priority ranking for conservation

• Published in: Aquatic sciences 2023-04, Vol.85 (2), p.50, Article 50
• Main Authors: Frota, Augusto, Morrone, Juan J., da Graça, Weferson J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Biodiversity; Biodiversity hot spots; Biogeography; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Cladistics; Congruences; Conservation; Conservation areas; Ecology; Endemism; Environmental Management; Fish; Fresh water; Freshwater; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Freshwater fish; Freshwater fishes; Geographical distribution; Headwaters; Hydrology; Inland water environment; Life Sciences; Marine & Freshwater Sciences; Nucleotide sequence; Oceanography; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Ranking; Research Article; River basins; Rivers; Sea level changes; Species extinction
• ISSN: 1015-1621; 1420-9055
• DOI: 10.1007/s00027-023-00947-x

Distributional, phylogenetic, molecular, and paleontological data may be integrated to discover biogeographic patterns exhibited by the organisms. Cladistic biogeography uses information on the phylogenetic relationships between taxa and their geographic distribution to infer a sequence of area fragmentation. Brooks Parsimony Analysis (BPA) was performed based on the phylogenetic proposals for Cnesterodontini to hypothesize on the historical relationships among nine areas previously recognized by endemism of freshwater fish from South America. Additionally, we investigated the conservation scenario for cnesterodontines based on biogeographic, phylogenetic, and extinction criteria to establish a priority ranking for the analyzed areas. We found that the area relationships for Cnesterodontini are strongly linked to the historical patterns of evolution of the hydrographic basins, revealing well-defined scenarios of the formation of hydrological barriers between coastal river basins (i.e., Atlantic Slope) and mainly drainages running into the La Plata River system (i.e., Inland Slope). Dispersal events through headwater capture and sea-level changes explain the congruences evidenced among other fish lineages that exhibit similar diversification patterns in the Central Brazil drainages and in drainages on the Atlantic coast of South America. The ranking of priority areas for conservation established for Cnesterodontini indicates that greater attention should be directed to the regions located in the Central Coastal and Upper Parana areas, mainly in the Atlantic Forest, which represents one of the most threatened biodiversity hotspots on the planet with serious threats to freshwater biodiversity.