MARIPOSAS · Macroevolutionary Rates by Integrating Phylogenomics and Ancestral character States - A study on Neotropical butterfly evolution.

Macroevolutionary Rates by Integrating Phylogenomics and Ancestral character States - A study on Neotropical butterfly evolution.

What is the problem/issue being addressed? We are facing an undeniable global biodiversity crisis. Understanding the impact of environmental disturbances is important but equally so is the understanding of mechanisms that form and maintain current species diversity. The American tropics are the most diverse region on Earth yet most biodiversity research there has largely focused on vertebrates and plants. This project addresses this gap in scientific knowledge by studying the evolutionary history of two species-rich insect groups, skippers and brush-footed butterflies. Why is it important for society? Insects are the largest component of biodiversity on Earth with key roles in ecosystem balance. Understanding the ecological and evolutionary processes that intervene in their evolution is important for untangling unknown ecosystem functions and biological interaction among species, as well as for anticipating ecological responses to anthropogenic environmental alterations. What are the overall objectives? The overall objectives of the project were: 1. Assemble a genomic dataset for Neotropical skipper and brush-footed butterflies in order to investigate similar evolutionary trajectories. I pursued this objective by using gene capture and high-throughput DNA sequencing of 350 loci. I met this objective by using bioinformatics pipelines developed by the host to infer the evolutionary history—speciation, extinction and dispersal—of butterflies. 2. Standardize approaches to study biodiversity from the perspective of insect evolution, including high-throughput DNA sequencing and multi-evidence species delimitation. I pursued this objective by using a multi-disciplinary effort to compile/generate data on geographical distribution, morphological variation and the natural history of butterflies. I met this objective by reviewing public databases and the literature. These datasets are one of the most comprehensive for any tropical butterfly group to date. 3. Generate knowledge that can enrich our understanding of Neotropical extant biodiversity. I pursued this objective by using multi-line evidence for an ecologically important insect group. I met this objective by utilizing probabilistic models informed by genomic, geographical distribution and morphological data to infer evolutionary processes driving current Neotropical butterfly diversity. The conclusions of the research are: 1. I found phylogenetic support for a long-standing hypothesis of morphological resemblance among distantly related butterfly species classified in the skipper butterfly’s subfamily Eudaminae. 2. I propose a novel synergistic approach between traditional taxonomy and latest speciation statistical models to robustly delimit butterfly species in the Neotropics. 3. Butterfly phenotypic variability and its geographical distribution in the Neotropics are explained by both 1) neutral processes, such as the rise of the Andes, and 2) intense biological interactions, such as prey-predator interactions driving morphological selection.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union