Evolution and Biogeographic History of Rubyspot Damselflies (Hetaerininae: Calopterygidae: Odonata)

The damselflies Hetaerininae, a subfamily of Calopterygidae, comprise four genera distributed from North to South America: Hetaerina, Mnesarete, Ormenophlebia and Bryoplathanon. While several studies have focused on the intriguing behavioral and morphological modifications within Hetaerina, little of the evolutionary history of the group is well understood. Understanding the biogeographical history of Hetaerininae is further complicated by uncertainty in important geological events, such as the closure of the Central American Seaway (CAS). We generated a phylogenetic hypothesis to test the relationships and divergence times within Hetaerininae using IQtree and BEAST2 and found that Mnesarete and Ormenophlebia render Hetaerina paraphyletic. Reclassification of the genera within Hetaerininae is necessary based on our results. We also tested the fit to our dataset of two different hypotheses for the closure of CAS. Our results supported a gradual closure, starting in the Oligocene and ending in the Pliocene. Using Ancestral Character State Reconstruction, we found that the rubyspot, which is associated with higher fecundity in several species, was ancestral for Hetaerininae and subsequently lost four times. Estimates of diversification in association with the rubyspot are needed to understand the plasticity of this important character. Forest habitat was the ancestral state for Hetaerininae, with transitions to generalist species of Hetaerina found primarily in the Mesoamerican region. These results add to our understanding of the relationship between morphology, biogeography and habitat in a charismatic group of damselflie

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Systematics and Evolution of True Bugs (Heteroptera) and Thread-Legged Assassin Bugs (Emesinae: Reduviidae)

True bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) are one of the most speciose suborders with incomplete metamorphosis, with behaviors including predation on arthropods, hematophagy, mycetophagy and phytophagy, and include species that are important disease vectors, plant pests and biological control agents. However, while relationships between infraorders are largely resolved, relationships between and within superfamilies are still contested, especially within the two largest infraorders, Cimicomorpha and Pentatomomorpha. Using a combined transcriptome and genome dataset covering 74 of the 88 families we resolved relationships between superfamilies and families of Cimicomorpha and Pentatomomorpha. Species within the Emesine Complex (Heteroptera: Reduviidae: Emesinae, Visayanocorinae, Saicinae) are unique among reduviids in having a cosmopolitan distribution, lacking ocelli and fossula spongiosa, and having a close association with spiderwebs. We used a combined high-throughput and Sanger sequencing dataset (384 loci, 15 taxa; 3 loci, 207 taxa) to resolve relationships between subfamilies and tribes, and discovered rampant paraphyly among subfamilies and tribes, necessitating revisions to the classification. We used ancestral character state reconstructions for 40 morphological characters to identify diagnostic features for a revised classification. Our new classification treats Saicinae and Visayanocorinae as junior synonyms of Emesinae, synonymizes the emesine tribes Ploiariolini Van Duzee and Metapterini Stål with Emesini Amyot and Serville, and recognizes six tribes within Emesinae (Collartidini Wygodzinsky, Emesini, Leistarchini Stål, Oncerotrachelini trib. nov., Saicini Stål stat. nov., and Visayanocorini Miller stat. nov.). We then used our phylogenetic hypothesis to test whether the four cosmopolitan genera share similar dispersal patterns and found they each dispersed during the Eocene, but from and to different continents. Based on their dispersal patterns and timing, and the observation that thread-legged bugs are found in flotsam, we further hypothesize that they may have dispersed primarily via rafting. Rarely collected, Collartidini (4 genera, 14 species) are a tribe of Emesinae that have retained a number of plesiomorphic features within Emesinae. The discovery of two undescribed species from Thailand and Malaysia (Borneo) has created the need for a reassessment of genera within Collartidini. We here synonymize the fossil genus Collarhamphus and extant genera Mangabea and Stenorhamphus, provide a revised diagnosis and description of Stenorhamphus, and describe Stenorhamphus segerak, new species and S. phuphan, new species, from Malaysia (Sarawak) and Thailand, respectively

Evolution and Biogeographic History of Rubyspot Damselflies (Hetaerininae: Calopterygidae: Odonata)

The damselflies Hetaerininae, a subfamily of Calopterygidae, comprise four genera distributed from North to South America: Hetaerina, Mnesarete, Ormenophlebia and Bryoplathanon. While several studies have focused on the intriguing behavioral and morphological modifications within Hetaerina, little of the evolutionary history of the group is well understood. Understanding the biogeographical history of Hetaerininae is further complicated by uncertainty in important geological events, such as the closure of the Central American Seaway (CAS). We generated a phylogenetic hypothesis to test the relationships and divergence times within Hetaerininae using IQtree and BEAST2 and found that Mnesarete and Ormenophlebia render Hetaerina paraphyletic. Reclassification of the genera within Hetaerininae is necessary based on our results. We also tested the fit to our dataset of two different hypotheses for the closure of CAS. Our results supported a gradual closure, starting in the Oligocene and ending in the Pliocene. Using Ancestral Character State Reconstruction, we found that the rubyspot, which is associated with higher fecundity in several species, was ancestral for Hetaerininae and subsequently lost four times. Estimates of diversification in association with the rubyspot are needed to understand the plasticity of this important character. Forest habitat was the ancestral state for Hetaerininae, with transitions to generalist species of Hetaerina found primarily in the Mesoamerican region. These results add to our understanding of the relationship between morphology, biogeography and habitat in a charismatic group of damselflies