Three new species of <i>Stiphrornis</i> (Aves: Muscicapidae) from the Afro-tropics, with a molecular phylogenetic assessment of the genus

Voelker, Gary; Tobler, Michael; Prestridge, Heather L.; Duijm, Elza; Groenenberg, D.S.J.; Hutchinson, Mark R.; Martin, Alyssa D.; Nieman, Aline M.; Roselaar, C.S.; Huntley, Jerry W.

doi:10.1080/14772000.2016.1226978

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The recognition of new taxa in sub-Saharan Africa is uncommon relative to other areas around the globe (e.g. South America, Indonesia; Fjeldså 2013) and most new African taxa have come from the Lower Guinean Forest Block (Beresford et al 1999;Schmidt et al 2008) or the mountains of eastern and central Africa (Jensen 1983;Dinesen et al 1994;Fjeldså & Kiure 2003;Beresford et al 2004;Bowie & Fjeldså 2005;Fjeldså et al 2006;Bowie et al 2009Bowie et al , 2016Voelker et al 2010Voelker et al , 2017. All these cases underscore the need for continued collecting of voucher specimens in sub-Saharan Africa (Bates et al 2004).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taxonomic revision of the Square-tailed Drongo species complex (Passeriformes: Dicruridae) with description of a new species from western Africa

Fuchs

Douno²,

Bowie

et al. 2018

Zootaxa

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We describe a new species of drongo in the Square-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii) complex using a combination of biometric and genetic data. The new species differs from previously described taxa in the Square-tailed Drongo complex by possessing a significantly heavier bill and via substantial genetic divergence (6.7%) from its sister-species D. sharpei. The new species is distributed across the gallery forests of coastal Guinea, extending to the Niger and Benue Rivers of Nigeria. We suspect that this taxon was overlooked by previous avian systematists because they either lacked comparative material from western Africa or because the key diagnostic morphological character (bill characteristics) was not measured. We provide an updated taxonomy of the Square-tailed Drongo species complex.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taxonomic revision of the Square-tailed Drongo species complex (Passeriformes: Dicruridae) with description of a new species from western Africa

Fuchs

Douno²,

Bowie

et al. 2018

Zootaxa

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“…Similar patterns are recovered in mammals, where six dispersal‐limited species have a higher average divergence estimate than the more dispersal capable Chiroptera (Figure a and Table ). Past studies have found evidence for lineages endemic to relictual forests within the DG (e.g., Gaubert et al., ; Huntley & Voelker, ; Voelker et al., ). However, despite increasing evidence of endemism within the gap, it appears that the DG may have played a substantial role in the creation and maintenance of genetic diversification between the UGF and LFG across birds, mammals, and even amphibians (Jongsma et al., ), regardless of dispersal ability.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…By extension, sufficient levels of genetic divergence clearly suggest the possibility of cryptic species (e.g., Huntley et al., ; Voelker et al. ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Genetic diversification patterns of a small number of bird and mammal taxa support this contention, where species do not share haplotypes across the gap (Beresford & Cracraft, ; Fuchs & Bowie, ; Fuchs et al., ; Hassanin et al., ; Marks, ; Nesi et al., ; Schmidt, Foster, Angehr, Durrant, & Fleischer, ; Voelker et al. ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While molecular studies of GCF birds have been increasing (e.g., Fuchs, Fjeldså, & Bowie, ; Huntley & Voelker, , ; Huntley, Harvey, Pavia, Boano, & Voelker, ; Voelker et al. ) broader comparative studies are only now becoming possible.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Underestimated and cryptic diversification patterns across Afro‐tropical lowland forests

Huntley

Keith

Castellanos

et al. 2019

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim: Vertebrate diversity in the Guineo-Congolian forests (GCF) of Africa is high, yet mechanisms responsible for generating that diversity remain remarkably understudied. These forests have alternatively been viewed as centres of diversification ("cradles") or more recently, as the opposite ("museums"). Here, we use a comparative dataset of avian and mammalian species to examine genetic diversification patterns across these forests and use these results to explain observed patterns in light of Plio-Pleistocene climatic change and life-history.Location: Africa. Methods:We analysed patterns of diversification across the GCF using a dataset composed of 629 and 1,048 mitochondrial sequences from 60 avian and 36 mammalian species, respectively. Uncorrected pairwise genetic distances were compared at three distinct geographical levels: west versus east of the Dahomey Gap, among the three major forest blocks, and among seven historical refugial areas. The timing of diversification was assessed for passerines, Rodentia, and Chiroptera. Results:We found substantial signatures of diversification in all three levels of our geographical comparisons. We recovered substantial disparity in the amount and depth of structure of diversification patterns between low dispersers (understorey birds and rodents) and more capable dispersers (other bird species and bats). Additionally, our chronogram recovered recent speciation and intraspecific diversification across songbird and mammalian lineages. Main conclusions:The discrete, and often deep, structuring of genetic diversification for both birds and mammals across the GCF revealed strong correlations between historic landscape fragmentation and dispersal ability. Our results revealed a striking amount of unrecognized genetic diversity, which may be suggestive of cryptic species.Given the rate at which these forests are being negatively impacted by human intervention, our general lack of knowledge concerning vertebrate diversity across these forests may very well impact our ability to identify evolutionary processes underlying diversity and enact meaningful conservation efforts in the future.

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Climatic refugia and reduced extinction correlate with underdispersion in mammals and birds in Africa

Cooper

Crouch

Ferguson

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Macroevolutionary patterns, often inferred from metrics of community relatedness, are often used to ascertain major evolutionary processes shaping communities. These patterns have been shown to be informative of biogeographic barriers, of habitat suitability and invasibility (especially with regard to environmental filtering), and of regions that function as evolutionary cradles (i.e., sources of diversification) or museums (i.e., regions of reduced extinction). Here, we analyzed continental datasets of mammal and bird distributions to identify primary drivers of community evolution on the African continent for mostly endothermic vertebrates. We find that underdispersion (i.e., relatively low phylogenetic diversity compared to species richness) closely correlates with specific ecoregions that have been identified as climatic refugia in the literature, regardless of whether these specific regions have been touted as cradles or museums. Using theoretical models of identical communities that differ only with respect to extinction rates, we find that even small suppressions of extinction rates can result in underdispersed communities, supporting the hypothesis that climatic stability can lead to underdispersion. We posit that large‐scale patterns of under‐ and overdispersion between regions of similar species richness are more reflective of a particular region’s extinction potential, and that the very nature of refugia can lead to underdispersion via the steady accumulation of species richness through diversification within the same ecoregion during climatic cycles. Thus, patterns of environmental filtering can be obfuscated by environments that coincide with biogeographic refugia, and considerations of regional biogeographic history are paramount for inferring macroevolutionary processes.

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Three new species of Stiphrornis (Aves: Muscicapidae) from the Afro-tropics, with a molecular phylogenetic assessment of the genus

Cited by 7 publications

References 36 publications

Taxonomic revision of the Square-tailed Drongo species complex (Passeriformes: Dicruridae) with description of a new species from western Africa

Taxonomic revision of the Square-tailed Drongo species complex (Passeriformes: Dicruridae) with description of a new species from western Africa

Underestimated and cryptic diversification patterns across Afro‐tropical lowland forests

Climatic refugia and reduced extinction correlate with underdispersion in mammals and birds in Africa

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