title: Colorful patterns indicate common ancestry in diverged tiger beetle taxa: Molecular phylogeny, biogeography, and evolution of elytral coloration of the genus Cicindela subgenus Sophiodela and its allies.
abstract: We investigated the phylogenetic relationships among tiger beetles of the subtribe Cicindelina (=Cicindela s. lat.; Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) mainly from the Oriental and Sino-Japanese zoogeographic regions using one mitochondrial and three nuclear gene sequences to examine the position of the subgenus Sophiodela, currently classified in the genus Cicindela s. str., their biogeography, and the evolution of their brilliant coloration. The subgenus Sophiodela was not related to the other subgenera of Cicindela s. str. but was closely related to the genus Cosmodela. In addition, the Oriental genus Calochroa was polyphyletic with three lineages, one of which was closely related to Sophiodela and Cosmodela. The clade comprising Sophiodela, Cosmodela and two Calochroa species, referred to here as the Sophiodela group, was strongly supported, and most species in this clade had similar brilliant coloration. The Sophiodela group was related to the genera Calomera, Cicindela (excluding Sophiodela) and Cicindelidia, and these were related to Lophyra, Hipparidium and Calochroa, except species in the Sophiodela group. Divergence time estimation suggested that these worldwide Cicindelina groups diverged in the early Oligocene, and the Sophiodela group, which is found in the Oriental and Sino-Japanese zoogeographic regions, in the mid Miocene. Some components of the elytral pattern related to maculation and coloration in the Cicindelina taxa studied contained weak, but significant, phylogenetic signals and were partly associated with habitat types. Therefore, the brilliant coloration of the Sophiodela was related to both phylogeny and habitat adaptation, although the function of coloration needs to be studied.
authors.affiliation: Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Otsu, Shiga 520-2113, Japan.
authors.forename: Kaoru
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tsuji
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hori
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology and Zoology, Yezin Agricultural University, Yezin, Myanmar.
authors.forename: Moe Hnin
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Phyu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Hongbin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan. Electronic address: sota@terra.zool.kyoto-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Teiji
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sota
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001517:Coleoptera / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D003116:Color; D017753:Ecosystem; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D049810:Genetic Speciation; D010802:Phylogeny; D058974:Phylogeography; D010858:Pigmentation / Q000235:genetics*
keywords: Character evolution; Divergence time; Habitat; Species tree; Taxonomy