Evolutionary history of the butterflyfishes (f: Chaetodontidae) and the rise of coral feeding fishes.
Of the 5000 fish species on coral reefs, corals dominate the diet of just 41 species. Most (61%) belong to a single family, the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae). We examine the evolutionary origins of chaetodontid corallivory using a new molecular phylogeny incorporating all 11 genera. A 1759-bp sequence of nuclear (S7I1 and ETS2) and mitochondrial (cytochrome b) data yielded a fully resolved tree with strong support for all major nodes. A chronogram, constructed using Bayesian inference with multiple parametric priors, and recent ecological data reveal that corallivory has arisen at least five times over a period of 12 Ma, from 15.7 to 3 Ma. A move onto coral reefs in the Miocene foreshadowed rapid cladogenesis within Chaetodon and the origins of corallivory, coinciding with a global reorganization of coral reefs and the expansion of fast-growing corals. This historical association underpins the sensitivity of specific butterflyfish clades to global coral decline.
Bellwood
D R
DR
School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld, Australia. david.bellwood@jcu.edu.au
Klanten
S
S
Cowman
P F
PF
Pratchett
M S
MS
Konow
N
N
van Herwerden
L
L
D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D005075:Biological Evolution; D045303:Cytochromes b / Q000235:genetics; D017753:Ecosystem; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D008957:Models, Genetic; D010473:Perciformes / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013997:Time Factors
D045303:Cytochromes b