The New Mitogenome of Erpornis zantholeuca (Aves: Passeriformes): Sequence, Structure, and Phylogenetic Analyses

Abstract

White-bellied Erpornis (<i>Erpornis zantholeuca</i>) is a group of birds in the order Passeriformes, but its taxonomic status remains controversial. To understand the phylogenetic position of <i>E. zantholeuca</i> and phylogenetic relations within this family, we sequenced the complete mitochondrial genome of <i>E. zantholeuca</i>, which was 16,902 bp in length, containing 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, 2 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and a control region. The nucleotide composition of the whole genome was 30.10% A, 30.48% C, 15.14% G, and 24.28% T and showed an elevated AT content (54.38%). All genes were encoded on the H-strand, with the exceptions of 8 tRNAs (<i>trnQ</i>, <i>trnA</i>, <i>trnN</i>, <i>trnC</i>, <i>trnY</i>, <i>trnS2</i>(<i>UCN</i>), <i>trnP</i>, <i>trnE</i>) and 1 PCG (<i>Mt-ND6</i>). Most PCGs used standard ATN as start codons, and TAN as stop codons. All tRNAs were predicted to form the typical cloverleaf secondary structures. The gene order of <i>E. zantholeuca</i> was consistent with that of <i>Gallus gallus</i>, which was considered to be a plesiomorphic or typical avian gene order. Phylogenetic relationships based on bayesian inference and maximum likelihood methods showed that <i>E. zantholeuca</i> was well supported as the sister group of (<i>Vireo altiloquus</i> + <i>Vireo olivaceus</i>). In addition, <i>Pteruthius melanotis</i> was sister to the other members of Vireonidae.