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Beta-diversity of ectoparasites at two spatial scales: nested hierarchy, geography and habitat type. Oecologia 2017; 184:507-520. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-017-3876-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2016] [Accepted: 04/26/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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52
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Kjer KM, Simon C, Yavorskaya M, Beutel RG. Progress, pitfalls and parallel universes: a history of insect phylogenetics. J R Soc Interface 2016; 13:20160363. [PMID: 27558853 PMCID: PMC5014063 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2016.0363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2016] [Accepted: 07/19/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The phylogeny of insects has been both extensively studied and vigorously debated for over a century. A relatively accurate deep phylogeny had been produced by 1904. It was not substantially improved in topology until recently when phylogenomics settled many long-standing controversies. Intervening advances came instead through methodological improvement. Early molecular phylogenetic studies (1985-2005), dominated by a few genes, provided datasets that were too small to resolve controversial phylogenetic problems. Adding to the lack of consensus, this period was characterized by a polarization of philosophies, with individuals belonging to either parsimony or maximum-likelihood camps; each largely ignoring the insights of the other. The result was an unfortunate detour in which the few perceived phylogenetic revolutions published by both sides of the philosophical divide were probably erroneous. The size of datasets has been growing exponentially since the mid-1980s accompanied by a wave of confidence that all relationships will soon be known. However, large datasets create new challenges, and a large number of genes does not guarantee reliable results. If history is a guide, then the quality of conclusions will be determined by an improved understanding of both molecular and morphological evolution, and not simply the number of genes analysed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl M Kjer
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of California-Davis, 1282 Academic Surge, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Chris Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 North Eagleville Road, Storrs, CT 06269-3043, USA
| | - Margarita Yavorskaya
- Institut für Spezielle Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, FSU Jena, 07743 Jena, Germany
| | - Rolf G Beutel
- Institut für Spezielle Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, FSU Jena, 07743 Jena, Germany
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53
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Mardon DK, Durden LA. Musserellus gen. nov., and Five New Species of Fleas (Siphonaptera: Stivaliidae) From Murid Rodents in Sulawesi and West Papua, Indonesia. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY 2016; 53:541-552. [PMID: 27073227 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjw012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2015] [Accepted: 01/29/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
A new stivaliid flea genus, Musserellus, and five new species are described. The new genus is compared with its closest morphological relatives, the genera Rectidigitus Holland and Metastivalius Holland. Musserellus vanpeeneni sp. nov., Musserellus wattsi sp. nov., Musserellus whitei sp. nov., and Musserellus marshalli sp. nov. are described from endemic murid rodents in Sulawesi, Indonesia, while Musserellus dunneti sp. nov. is described from Rattus rattus in West Papua, Indonesia. Host associations and the biogeographical relevance of the faunal connection between Sulawesi and New Guinea shown by Musserellus are briefly discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- David K Mardon
- Fagus, Manse Road, Killin, Perthshire, Scotland, FK21 8UY, United Kingdom
| | - Lance A Durden
- Department of Biology, Georgia Southern University, 4324 Old Register Rd., Statesboro, GA 30458 , and
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54
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Szidat's rule re-tested: relationships between flea and host phylogenetic clade ranks in four biogeographic realms. Parasitology 2016; 143:723-31. [PMID: 26887914 DOI: 10.1017/s0031182016000159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
We tested Szidat's rule (the more primitive the host, the more primitive the parasites it harbours) by analysing the relationships between phylogenetic clade ranks of fleas and their small mammalian hosts in four biogeographic realms (Afrotropics, Neotropics, Nearctic and Palearctic). From the host perspective, we tested the association between host clade rank and the mean clade rank of all fleas collected from this host. From the flea perspective, we tested the relationships between flea clade rank and the mean clade rank of hosts on which this flea was recorded. First, we tested whether the analysis of the relationships between host and flea clade ranks should be controlled for phylogenetic dependence among either host or flea species. Then, we tested for the associations between host and flea clade ranks separately for each realm using either a phylogenetic general least-squares analysis or an ordinary least-squares analysis. In all realms, the mean clade rank of fleas parasitic on a given host increased with an increase of this host's clade rank, and the mean clade rank of hosts recorded on a given flea increased with an increase of this flea's clade rank, suggesting that Szidat's rule, at least to some extent, holds for fleas.
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55
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Condamine FL, Clapham ME, Kergoat GJ. Global patterns of insect diversification: towards a reconciliation of fossil and molecular evidence? Sci Rep 2016; 6:19208. [PMID: 26778170 PMCID: PMC4725974 DOI: 10.1038/srep19208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2015] [Accepted: 12/07/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Macroevolutionary studies of insects at diverse taxonomic scales often reveal dynamic evolutionary patterns, with multiple inferred diversification rate shifts. Responses to major past environmental changes, such as the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution, or the development of major key innovations, such as wings or complete metamorphosis are usually invoked as potential evolutionary triggers. However this view is partially contradicted by studies on the family-level fossil record showing that insect diversification was relatively constant through time. In an attempt to reconcile both views, we investigate large-scale insect diversification dynamics at family level using two distinct types of diversification analyses on a molecular timetree representing ca. 82% of the extant families, and reassess the insect fossil diversity using up-to-date records. Analyses focusing on the fossil record recovered an early burst of diversification, declining to low and steady rates through time, interrupted by extinction events. Phylogenetic analyses showed that major shifts of diversification rates only occurred in the four richest holometabolous orders. Both suggest that neither the development of flight or complete metamorphosis nor the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution environmental changes induced immediate changes in diversification regimes; instead clade-specific innovations likely promoted the diversification of major insect orders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien L. Condamine
- CNRS, UMR 5554 Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution (Université de Montpellier), Place Eugène Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier, France
- University of Alberta, Department of Biological Sciences, Edmonton T6G 2E9, AB, Canada
| | - Matthew E. Clapham
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Gael J. Kergoat
- INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (INRA, IRD, CIRAD, Montpellier SupAgro), 755 Avenue du Campus Agropolis, 34988 Montferrier-sur-Lez, France
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56
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Dittmar K, Zhu Q, Hastriter MW, Whiting MF. On the probability of dinosaur fleas. BMC Evol Biol 2016; 16:9. [PMID: 26754250 PMCID: PMC4710018 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0568-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2014] [Accepted: 12/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, a set of publications described flea fossils from Jurassic and Early Cretaceous geological strata in northeastern China, which were suggested to have parasitized feathered dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and early birds or mammals. In support of these fossils being fleas, a recent publication in BMC Evolutionary Biology described the extended abdomen of a female fossil specimen as due to blood feeding.We here comment on these findings, and conclude that the current interpretation of the evolutionary trajectory and ecology of these putative dinosaur fleas is based on appeal to probability, rather than evidence. Hence, their taxonomic positioning as fleas, or stem fleas, as well as their ecological classification as ectoparasites and blood feeders is not supported by currently available data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Dittmar
- Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Cooke 109, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA.
- Graduate Program of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, 411 Cooke Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA.
| | - Qiyun Zhu
- Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Cooke 109, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA
| | - Michael W Hastriter
- Monte L. Bean Museum, Brigham Young University, 336 MLB, Provo, UT, 84602, USA
| | - Michael F Whiting
- Department of Biology and M. L. Bean Museum, Brigham Young University, 4142 LSB, Provo, UT, 84602, USA
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57
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Leung TLF. Fossils of parasites: what can the fossil record tell us about the evolution of parasitism? Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2015; 92:410-430. [PMID: 26538112 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2015] [Revised: 10/09/2015] [Accepted: 10/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Parasites are common in many ecosystems, yet because of their nature, they do not fossilise readily and are very rare in the geological record. This makes it challenging to study the evolutionary transition that led to the evolution of parasitism in different taxa. Most studies on the evolution of parasites are based on phylogenies of extant species that were constructed based on morphological and molecular data, but they give us an incomplete picture and offer little information on many important details of parasite-host interactions. The lack of fossil parasites also means we know very little about the roles that parasites played in ecosystems of the past even though it is known that parasites have significant influences on many ecosystems. The goal of this review is to bring attention to known fossils of parasites and parasitism, and provide a conceptual framework for how research on fossil parasites can develop in the future. Despite their rarity, there are some fossil parasites which have been described from different geological eras. These fossils include the free-living stage of parasites, parasites which became fossilised with their hosts, parasite eggs and propagules in coprolites, and traces of pathology inflicted by parasites on the host's body. Judging from the fossil record, while there were some parasite-host relationships which no longer exist in the present day, many parasite taxa which are known from the fossil record seem to have remained relatively unchanged in their general morphology and their patterns of host association over tens or even hundreds of millions of years. It also appears that major evolutionary and ecological transitions throughout the history of life on Earth coincided with the appearance of certain parasite taxa, as the appearance of new host groups also provided new niches for potential parasites. As such, fossil parasites can provide additional data regarding the ecology of their extinct hosts, since many parasites have specific life cycles and transmission modes which reflect certain aspects of the host's ecology. The study of fossil parasites can be conducted using existing techniques in palaeontology and palaeoecology, and microscopic examination of potential material such as coprolites may uncover more fossil evidence of parasitism. However, I also urge caution when interpreting fossils as examples of parasites or parasitism-induced traces. I point out a number of cases where parasitism has been spuriously attributed to some fossil specimens which, upon re-examination, display traits which are just as (if not more) likely to be found in free-living taxa. The study of parasite fossils can provide a more complete picture of the ecosystems and evolution of life throughout Earth's history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tommy L F Leung
- Department of Zoology Centre for Behavioural and Physiological Ecology, Zoology, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia
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58
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Poinar G. A New Genus of Fleas with Associated Microorganisms in Dominican Amber. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY 2015; 52:1234-1240. [PMID: 26373892 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjv134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2015] [Accepted: 08/13/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
A flea preserved in Dominican amber is described as Atopopsyllus cionus, n. gen., n. sp. (Atopopsyllini n. tribe, Spilopsyllinae, Pulicidae). The male specimen has two unique characters that have not been noted in previous extant or extinct fleas, thus warranting its tribal status. These characters are five-segmented maxillary palps and cerci-like organs on abdominal tergite X. Additional characters are the absence of ctenidia, very small eyes, a lanceolate terminal segment of the maxillary palps, legs with six notches on the dorsal margin of the tibiae, five pairs of lateral plantar bristles on the distitarsomeres, and nearly straight ungues with a wide space between the basal lobe and tarsal claw. Trypanosomes and coccobacilli in the rectum and coccobacilli on the tip of the epipharynx of the fossil are depicted and briefly characterized.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Poinar
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331.
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59
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Goodman SM, Randrenjarison Andriniaina HR, Soarimalala V, Beaucournu JC. The Fleas of Endemic and Introduced Small Mammals in Central Highland Forests of Madagascar: Faunistics, Species Diversity, and Absence of Host Specificity. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY 2015; 52:1135-1143. [PMID: 26336252 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjv113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2015] [Accepted: 07/14/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Data are presented on the flea species of the genera Paractenopsyllus (Ceratophyllidae, Leptopsyllinae) and Synopsyllus (Pulicidae, Xenopsyllinae) obtained from small mammals during two 2014 seasonal surveys at a montane humid forest site (Ambohitantely) in the Central Highlands of Madagascar. The mammal groups included the endemic family Tenrecidae (tenrecs) and subfamily Nesomyinae (rodents) and two introduced families Muridae (rodents) and Soricidae (shrews); no fleas were recovered from the latter family. The surveys were conducted at the end of the wet and dry seasons with 288 individual small mammals captured, including 12 endemic and four introduced species. These animals yielded 344 fleas, representing nine species endemic to Madagascar; no introduced species was collected. Some seasonal variation was found in the number of trapped small mammals, but no marked difference was found in species richness. For flea species represented by sufficient samples, no parasite-host specificity was found, and there is evidence for considerable lateral exchange in the local flea fauna between species of tenrecs and the two rodent families (endemic and introduced). The implications of these results are discussed with regards to small mammal species richness and community structure, as well as a possible mechanism for the maintenance of sylvatic cycles of bubonic plague in the montane forests of Madagascar.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven M Goodman
- Field Museum of Natural History, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60605. Association Vahatra, BP 3972, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar.
| | | | | | - Jean-Claude Beaucournu
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie et Zoologie appliquée, Faculté de Médecine, et Institut de Parasitologie de l'Ouest, 2 Ave., du Professeur Léon Bernard, F-35043 Rennes cedex, France
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60
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van der Mescht L, Matthee S, Matthee CA. A genetic perspective on the taxonomy and evolution of the medically important flea,Dinopsyllus ellobius(Siphonaptera: Dinopsyllinae), and the resurrection ofDinopsyllus abaris. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Luther van der Mescht
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology; Stellenbosch University; Private Bag X1 Matieland 7602 South Africa
- Evolutionary Genomics Group; Department of Botany and Zoology; Stellenbosch University; Private Bag X1 Matieland 7602 South Africa
| | - Sonja Matthee
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology; Stellenbosch University; Private Bag X1 Matieland 7602 South Africa
| | - Conrad A. Matthee
- Evolutionary Genomics Group; Department of Botany and Zoology; Stellenbosch University; Private Bag X1 Matieland 7602 South Africa
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61
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De Baets K, Littlewood DTJ. The Importance of Fossils in Understanding the Evolution of Parasites and Their Vectors. ADVANCES IN PARASITOLOGY 2015; 90:1-51. [PMID: 26597064 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apar.2015.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Knowledge concerning the diversity of parasitism and its reach across our current understanding of the tree of life has benefitted considerably from novel molecular phylogenetic methods. However, the timing of events and the resolution of the nature of the intimate relationships between parasites and their hosts in deep time remain problematic. Despite its vagaries, the fossil record provides the only direct evidence of parasites and parasitism in the fossil record of extant and extinct lineages. Here, we demonstrate the potential of the fossil record and other lines of geological evidence to calibrate the origin and evolution of parasitism by combining different kinds of dating evidence with novel molecular clock methodologies. Other novel methods promise to provide additional evidence for the presence or the life habit of pathogens and their vectors, including the discovery and analysis of ancient DNA and other biomolecules, as well as computed tomographic methods.
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