Browsing by Autor "Alejandro Laspiur"

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Total evidence phylogenetic analysis of Leiosauridae (Squamata) with focus on the ‘para-anoles’ and description of a new <i>Urostrophus</i> species from the Bolivian Andes
(Taylor & Francis, 2023) André L. G. Carvalho; Alejandro Laspiur; Julia Klaczko; Luis Rolando Rivas; Miguel Tréfaut Rodrigues; Marco Aurélio de Sena; Ricardo Céspedes
Only since the late 1980s have lizard specialists begun incorporating phylogenetic information to the classification of leiosaurids. These are among the most enigmatic South American lizards, with 35 currently recognised species arranged in six genera. To evaluate their relationships, we assembled a data set based on published and novel information containing 135 morphological characters and 11,235 DNA base pairs (14 loci) for up to 52 terminals, including outgroups. We performed 13 analyses based on different optimality criteria (parsimony, maximum likelihood, and coalescent approach) and indel coding strategies (gaps coded as missing data or as a fifth state). We also evaluated the impact of phenotypic evidence on the phylogeny of leiosaurids, and investigated the level of informativeness and potential sources of topological conflict using a Quartet Sampling analysis. Phylogenetic analyses supported the monophyly of major leiosaurid clades, including subfamilies Enyaliinae and Leiosaurinae, and the ‘para-anoles’ clade (Urostrophus + Anisolepis). However, Urostrophus was inferred as paraphyletic, with U. vautieri forming a clade with Anisolepis. These relationships motivate the synonymization of Anisolepis Boulenger, Citation1885 with Urostrophus Duméril & Bibron, 1837. The monophyly of Pristidactylus and, surprisingly, of Enyalius, were also challenged, underscoring the need for additional phylogenetic work. Finally, we described Urostrophus chungarae sp. nov. from the Torotoro National Park, Potosí, Bolivia. This apparently rare leiosaurid was inferred as sister to U. gallardoi, a Chacoan species distributed in northern Argentina and southeastern Bolivia. We conclude with a revised classification of Leiosauridae and by pointing out a number of unresolved issues that require further systematic investigation.
Unravelling interspecific relationships among highland lizards: first phylogenetic hypothesis using total evidence of the Liolaemus montanus group (Iguania: Liolaemidae)
(Oxford University Press, 2019) Cristian Simón Abdala; Andrés Sebastián Quinteros; Romina Valeria Semhan; Ana Lucia Bulacios Arroyo; James A. Schulte; Marcos Maximiliano Paz; Mario R. Ruiz‐Monachesi; Alejandro Laspiur; Álvaro J. Aguilar-Kirigin; Roberto Gutiérrez
Abstract The South American lizard genus Liolaemus comprises &gt; 260 species, of which &gt; 60 are recognized as members of the Liolaemus montanus group, distributed throughout the Andes in central Peru, Bolivia, Chile and central Argentina. Despite its great morphological diversity and complex taxonomic history, a robust phylogenetic estimate is still lacking for this group. Here, we study the morphological and molecular diversity of the L. montanus group and present the most complete quantitative phylogenetic hypothesis for the group to date. Our phylogeny includes 103 terminal taxa, of which 91 are members of the L. montanus group (58 are assigned to available species and 33 are of uncertain taxonomic status). Our matrix includes 306 morphological and ecological characters and 3057 molecular characters. Morphological characters include 48 continuous and 258 discrete characters, of which 70% (216) are new to the literature. The molecular characters represent five mitochondrial markers. We performed three analyses: a morphology-only matrix, a molecular-only matrix and a matrix including both morphological and molecular characters (total evidence hypothesis). Our total evidence hypothesis recovered the L. montanus group as monophyletic and included ≥ 12 major clades, revealing an unexpectedly complex phylogeny.