@article {12891, title = {Two new genera of songbirds represent endemic radiations from the Shola Sky Islands of the Western Ghats, India.}, journal = {BMC Evol Biol}, volume = {17}, year = {2017}, month = {2017 Jan 23}, pages = {31}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: A long-standing view of Indian biodiversity is that while rich in species, there are few endemics or in-situ radiations within the subcontinent. One exception is the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot, an isolated mountain range with many endemic species. Understanding the origins of the montane-restricted species is crucial to illuminate both taxonomic and environmental history.

RESULTS: With evidence from genetic, morphometric, song, and plumage data, we show that two songbird lineages endemic to the Western Ghats montane forest each have diversified into multiple distinct species. Historically labeled as single species of widespread Asian genera, these two lineages are highly divergent and do not group with the taxa in which they were previously classified but rather are distinct early divergences in larger Asian clades of flycatchers and babblers. Here we designated two new genera, the Western Ghats shortwings as Sholicola and the laughingthrushes as Montecincla, and evaluated species-limits to reflect distinct units by revising six previously named taxa and describing one novel species. Divergence dating showed that both these montane groups split from their Himalayan relatives during the Miocene, which is coincident with a shift towards arid conditions that fragmented the previously contiguous humid forest across peninsular India and isolated these lineages in the Western Ghats. Furthermore, these two genera showed congruent patterns of diversification across the Western Ghats Sky Islands, coincident with other climatic changes.

CONCLUSION: Our study reveals the existence of two independent endemic radiations in the high montane Western Ghats or Shola Sky Islands with coincident divergence times, highlighting the role of climate in the diversification of these ancient lineages. The endemic and highly divergent nature of these previously unrecognized species underscores the dearth of knowledge about the biogeography of the Asian tropics, even for comparatively well-known groups such as birds. The substantial increase in the diversity of this region underscores the need for more rigorous systematic analysis to inform biodiversity studies and conservation efforts.

}, issn = {1471-2148}, doi = {10.1186/s12862-017-0882-6}, author = {Robin, V V and Vishnudas, C K and Gupta, Pooja and Rheindt, Frank E and Hooper, Daniel M and Ramakrishnan, Uma and Reddy, Sushma} } @article {3548, title = {Genome-wide data reveal cryptic diversity and genetic introgression in an Oriental cynopterine fruit bat radiation.}, journal = {BMC Evol Biol}, volume = {16}, year = {2016}, month = {2016}, pages = {41}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: The Oriental fruit bat genus Cynopterus, with several geographically overlapping species, presents an interesting case study to evaluate the evolutionary significance of coexistence versus isolation. We examined the morphological and genetic variability of congeneric fruit bats Cynopterus sphinx and C. brachyotis using 405 samples from two natural contact zones and 17 allopatric locations in the Indian subcontinent; and investigated the population differentiation patterns, evolutionary history, and the possibility of cryptic diversity in this species pair.

RESULTS: Analysis of microsatellites, cytochrome b gene sequences, and restriction digestion based genome-wide data revealed that C. sphinx and C. brachyotis do not hybridize in contact zones. However, cytochrome b gene sequences and genome-wide SNP data helped uncover a cryptic, hitherto unrecognized cynopterine lineage in northeastern India coexisting with C. sphinx. Further analyses of shared variation of SNPs using Patterson{\textquoteright}s D statistics suggest introgression between this lineage and C. sphinx. Multivariate analyses of morphology using genetically classified grouping confirmed substantial morphological overlap between C. sphinx and C. brachyotis, specifically in the high elevation contact zones in southern India.

CONCLUSION: Our results uncover novel diversity and detect a pattern of genetic introgression in a cryptic radiation of bats, demonstrating the complicated nature of lineage diversification in this poorly understood taxonomic group. Our results highlight the importance of genome-wide data to study evolutionary processes of morphologically similar species pairs. Our approach represents a significant step forward in evolutionary research on young radiations of non-model species that may retain the ability of interspecific gene flow.

}, issn = {1471-2148}, doi = {10.1186/s12862-016-0599-y}, author = {Chattopadhyay, Balaji and Garg, Kritika M and Kumar, A K Vinoth and Doss, D Paramanantha Swami and Rheindt, Frank E and Kandula, Sripathi and Ramakrishnan, Uma} }