Bayesian spatio‐temporal reconstruction reveals rapid diversification and Pleistocene range expansion in the widespread columnar cactus Pilosocereus

Abstract

Aim Pilosocereus is one of the richest and most widespread genera of columnar cacti, extending from south‐west USA to southern Brazil. Most species occur in the seasonally dry tropical forest biome but can also be found in xeric microhabitats inside woody savannas (Cerrado) and moist forests (Brazilian Atlantic forest). The genus exhibits a highly disjunct distribution across the Neotropics. Using a 90% complete species‐level phylogeny, we reconstructed the spatio‐temporal evolution of Pilosocereus to explore the historical factors behind the species richness of Neotropical dry formations. Location South America, Mesoamerica, Caribbean, south‐western North America. Taxon Genus Pilosocereus (Cactaceae, Cactoideae, Cereeae). Methods We used plastid and nuclear DNA sequences and Bayesian inference to estimate phylogenetic relationships and lineage divergence times. Ancestral ranges were inferred within the Pilosocereus subgenus Pilosocereus s. s. clade using the Dispersal–Extinction–Cladogenesis model in a Bayesian framework to account for parameter estimation uncertainty and the effect of geographical distance on dispersal rates. Results Pilosocereus was recovered as polyphyletic, with representatives of other Cereeae nested within. The Pilosocereus subgenus Pilosocereus s. s. clade originated around the Pliocene–Pleistocene transition (2.7 Ma), probably within the Caatinga seasonally dry tropical forest (SDTF) formation. Species divergences were dated in the Middle and Upper Pleistocene, often constrained to the same geographic region but also associated to migration events to other xeric habitats in Mesoamerica and northern South America; dispersal rates were not dependent on distance. Main conclusions Diversification dynamics in the Pilosocereus subgenus Pilosocereus s. s. clade agree with other infrageneric studies in cacti. Species divergence was rapid, driven by in situ diversification and migration events between SDTF dry formations and xeric microhabitats within other biomes and probably linked to Pleistocene climatic changes. This dynamic history differs from that found in woody SDTF lineages, which are older in age and characterized by low‐dispersal rates and long‐term isolation.

Global biogeographic structuring of tropical shallow‐water brittle stars

“…Historical biogeographic reconstructions were performed under a biogeographic event‐based model that considers both vicariance and dispersal as processes, DEC (Ree et al, ). The Bayesian implementation of this model (Landis, Matzke, Moore, & Huelsenbeck, ), in RevBayes (Höhna et al, ), has been used for testing different biogeographic scenarios (Lavor, Calvente, Versieux, & Sanmartin, ). We used species distributions categorized into the three RES, as delimited from beta diversity patterns (A, Atlantic; EP, East Pacific; and IWP, Indo‐West Pacific).…”

“…Bayesian implementation of this model (Landis, Matzke, Moore, & Huelsenbeck, 2013), in revbayes (Höhna et al, 2016), has been used for testing different biogeographic scenarios (Lavor, Calvente, Versieux, & Sanmartin, 2018). We used species distributions categorized into the three RES, as delimited from beta diversity patterns (A, Atlantic; EP, East Pacific; and IWP, Indo-West Pacific).…”

Pleistocene aridification underlies the evolutionary history of the Caribbean endemic, insular, giant Consolea (Opuntioideae)

“…4). Likewise, other cacti, such as Harrisia and Pilosocereus show the same pattern (Franck et al, 2013b; Lavor et al, 2019), as do a wide range of other widespread tropical species that can be found naturally in south Florida and which are shared with the Caribbean (Long, 1974; Myers et al, 2000; Negrón‐Ortiz and Watson, 2003; Santiago‐Valentín and Olmstead, 2004). Some animals show the same pattern, such as the short‐faced bats, which initially diversified in the Caribbean before dispersing to continental North and South America (Dávalos, 2007).…”

“…Glacial and interglacial events during the Pleistocene are well known for their global effects on speciation and diversification in many organisms, especially plants (Stebbins, 1950, 1971; Simpson, 1975; Gentry, 1982; Prance, 1982; Pennington et al, 2004; Soltis et al, 2006; Rull, 2008; Ellison et al, 2012). Pleistocene fluctuations have also been suggested to have affected diversification in numerous groups of cacti from both North and South America, including some Antillean taxa (Majure et al, 2012; Ornelas and Rodriguez‐Gómez, 2015; Menezes et al, 2016; Perez et al, 2016; Franco et al, 2017; Lavor et al, 2019). In particular, the genus Harrisia shows a clear Caribbean radiation possibly originating in western Cuba that likely corresponds to the mid‐Pleistocene transition (Franck et al, 2013a) very similar to the pattern seen here in Consolea .…”

Philogeny, biogeography and taxonomy of theBarbacenia inselbergs group (Velloziaceae)

“…The fast and recent radiation in Barbacenia during the Neogene is likely associated with Miocene cooling (Zachos et al, 2008) and the expansion of rocky outcrops and the diversification of its flora (Alcantara et al, 2018, Antonelli et al, 2010, Arakaki et al, 2011, Lavor et al, 2019, Luebert and Wen, 2008, Perret et al, 2012, Särkinen et al, 2012. Besides, paleovegetation dynamics of Pleistocene and global climatic oscillations may have contributed to shaping the current diversity and distribution of Barbacenia lineages (Alcantara et al, 2018).…”