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Theodore J Papenfuss - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • historical biogeography resolves the origins of endemic arabian Toad lineages anura bufonidae evidence for ancient vicariance and dispersal events with the horn of africa and south asia
    BMC Evolutionary Biology, 2015
    Co-Authors: Daniel M Portik, Theodore J Papenfuss
    Abstract:

    The Arabian Peninsula is home to a unique fauna that has assembled and evolved throughout the course of major geophysical events, including the separation of the Arabian Plate from Africa and subsequent collision with Eurasia. Opportunities for faunal exchanges with particular continents occurred in temporally distinct periods, and the presence of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian derived taxa on the Arabian Peninsula signifies the complexity of these historical biogeographic events. The six True Toad species (family Bufonidae) endemic to the Arabian Peninsula present a considerable taxonomic and biogeographic challenge because they are part of a global bufonid radiation, including several genera surrounding the Arabian Peninsula, and difficult to discriminate morphologically. As they could be derived from African, Western Eurasian, or South Asian Toad groups, elucidating their evolutionary relationships has important implications for historical biogeography. Here, we analyze a global molecular data set of 243 bufonid lineages, with an emphasis on new sampling from the Horn of Africa, Western Eurasia, South Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula, to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of the Arabian species. We produce a robust time-calibrated phylogeny to infer the biogeographic history of this group on and around the Arabian Peninsula. Our phylogenetic analyses indicate two of the endemic Arabian Toad species, “Bufo” tihamicus and “Bufo” arabicus, evolved independently within the African genus Amietophrynus. We confirm the Arabian species Duttaphrynus dhufarensis is of South Asian origin, but do not find evidence for the Asian genus Duttaphrynus being present in the Horn of Africa, discrediting a previously proposed Asian bufonid dispersal event to Africa. We also do not find evidence of the African genus Amietophrynus occurring in South Asia, suggesting that unlike many other vertebrate taxa, Toads have not used the Arabian Peninsula as a stepping-stone for trans-continental dispersal. Our divergence dating estimates strongly suggest the formation of the Red Sea drove simultaneous divergences between two of the Arabian species (A. tihamicus comb. nov. and A. arabicus comb. nov.) and their closest mainland African relatives in the Early Miocene. We estimate the divergence of D. dhufarensis with its closest South Asian relatives occurred in the mid to Late Miocene, suggesting the temporary or permanent land connections between the Arabian plate and Eurasia facilitated dispersal of this lineage to the Arabian Peninsula. The Arabian bufonid assemblage, despite being comparatively depauperate with respect to surrounding continents, exemplifies the faunal pattern of the Arabian Peninsula, namely being a complex admixture of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian elements. The historical biogeographic patterns exhibited by Arabian Toads and their allies are concordant with studies of other vertebrate taxa, building support for the role of major geological events in driving simultaneous vicariance and dispersal events around the Arabian Peninsula. Although many taxa or groups exhibiting disjunct Afro-Arabian distributions appear to have dispersed more recently from the Horn of Africa via a southern land bridge or overwater dispersal, both Amietophrynus tihamicus and A. arabicus likely represent True African relicts resulting from vicariance associated with the Red Sea formation, a pattern that so far is rare among the vertebrate species investigated.

  • historical biogeography resolves the origins of endemic arabian Toad lineages anura bufonidae evidence for ancient vicariance and dispersal events with the horn of africa and south asia
    BMC Evolutionary Biology, 2015
    Co-Authors: Daniel M Portik, Theodore J Papenfuss
    Abstract:

    Background The Arabian Peninsula is home to a unique fauna that has assembled and evolved throughout the course of major geophysical events, including the separation of the Arabian Plate from Africa and subsequent collision with Eurasia. Opportunities for faunal exchanges with particular continents occurred in temporally distinct periods, and the presence of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian derived taxa on the Arabian Peninsula signifies the complexity of these historical biogeographic events. The six True Toad species (family Bufonidae) endemic to the Arabian Peninsula present a considerable taxonomic and biogeographic challenge because they are part of a global bufonid radiation, including several genera surrounding the Arabian Peninsula, and difficult to discriminate morphologically. As they could be derived from African, Western Eurasian, or South Asian Toad groups, elucidating their evolutionary relationships has important implications for historical biogeography. Here, we analyze a global molecular data set of 243 bufonid lineages, with an emphasis on new sampling from the Horn of Africa, Western Eurasia, South Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula, to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of the Arabian species. We produce a robust time-calibrated phylogeny to infer the biogeographic history of this group on and around the Arabian Peninsula.

Daniel M Portik - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • historical biogeography resolves the origins of endemic arabian Toad lineages anura bufonidae evidence for ancient vicariance and dispersal events with the horn of africa and south asia
    BMC Evolutionary Biology, 2015
    Co-Authors: Daniel M Portik, Theodore J Papenfuss
    Abstract:

    The Arabian Peninsula is home to a unique fauna that has assembled and evolved throughout the course of major geophysical events, including the separation of the Arabian Plate from Africa and subsequent collision with Eurasia. Opportunities for faunal exchanges with particular continents occurred in temporally distinct periods, and the presence of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian derived taxa on the Arabian Peninsula signifies the complexity of these historical biogeographic events. The six True Toad species (family Bufonidae) endemic to the Arabian Peninsula present a considerable taxonomic and biogeographic challenge because they are part of a global bufonid radiation, including several genera surrounding the Arabian Peninsula, and difficult to discriminate morphologically. As they could be derived from African, Western Eurasian, or South Asian Toad groups, elucidating their evolutionary relationships has important implications for historical biogeography. Here, we analyze a global molecular data set of 243 bufonid lineages, with an emphasis on new sampling from the Horn of Africa, Western Eurasia, South Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula, to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of the Arabian species. We produce a robust time-calibrated phylogeny to infer the biogeographic history of this group on and around the Arabian Peninsula. Our phylogenetic analyses indicate two of the endemic Arabian Toad species, “Bufo” tihamicus and “Bufo” arabicus, evolved independently within the African genus Amietophrynus. We confirm the Arabian species Duttaphrynus dhufarensis is of South Asian origin, but do not find evidence for the Asian genus Duttaphrynus being present in the Horn of Africa, discrediting a previously proposed Asian bufonid dispersal event to Africa. We also do not find evidence of the African genus Amietophrynus occurring in South Asia, suggesting that unlike many other vertebrate taxa, Toads have not used the Arabian Peninsula as a stepping-stone for trans-continental dispersal. Our divergence dating estimates strongly suggest the formation of the Red Sea drove simultaneous divergences between two of the Arabian species (A. tihamicus comb. nov. and A. arabicus comb. nov.) and their closest mainland African relatives in the Early Miocene. We estimate the divergence of D. dhufarensis with its closest South Asian relatives occurred in the mid to Late Miocene, suggesting the temporary or permanent land connections between the Arabian plate and Eurasia facilitated dispersal of this lineage to the Arabian Peninsula. The Arabian bufonid assemblage, despite being comparatively depauperate with respect to surrounding continents, exemplifies the faunal pattern of the Arabian Peninsula, namely being a complex admixture of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian elements. The historical biogeographic patterns exhibited by Arabian Toads and their allies are concordant with studies of other vertebrate taxa, building support for the role of major geological events in driving simultaneous vicariance and dispersal events around the Arabian Peninsula. Although many taxa or groups exhibiting disjunct Afro-Arabian distributions appear to have dispersed more recently from the Horn of Africa via a southern land bridge or overwater dispersal, both Amietophrynus tihamicus and A. arabicus likely represent True African relicts resulting from vicariance associated with the Red Sea formation, a pattern that so far is rare among the vertebrate species investigated.

  • historical biogeography resolves the origins of endemic arabian Toad lineages anura bufonidae evidence for ancient vicariance and dispersal events with the horn of africa and south asia
    BMC Evolutionary Biology, 2015
    Co-Authors: Daniel M Portik, Theodore J Papenfuss
    Abstract:

    Background The Arabian Peninsula is home to a unique fauna that has assembled and evolved throughout the course of major geophysical events, including the separation of the Arabian Plate from Africa and subsequent collision with Eurasia. Opportunities for faunal exchanges with particular continents occurred in temporally distinct periods, and the presence of African, Western Eurasian, and South Asian derived taxa on the Arabian Peninsula signifies the complexity of these historical biogeographic events. The six True Toad species (family Bufonidae) endemic to the Arabian Peninsula present a considerable taxonomic and biogeographic challenge because they are part of a global bufonid radiation, including several genera surrounding the Arabian Peninsula, and difficult to discriminate morphologically. As they could be derived from African, Western Eurasian, or South Asian Toad groups, elucidating their evolutionary relationships has important implications for historical biogeography. Here, we analyze a global molecular data set of 243 bufonid lineages, with an emphasis on new sampling from the Horn of Africa, Western Eurasia, South Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula, to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of the Arabian species. We produce a robust time-calibrated phylogeny to infer the biogeographic history of this group on and around the Arabian Peninsula.

Raul O Gomez - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • a new pliocene True Toad anura bufonidae first record of an extinct species from south america
    Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 2019
    Co-Authors: Celeste M Perezben, Raul O Gomez, Ana Maria Baez
    Abstract:

    Bufonids, known as True Toads, constitute a speciose clade of hyloid neobatrachian frogs numbering about 600 species (Frost, 2018) and with an almost cosmopolitan distribution (Pramuk et al., 2008)...

  • delayed osteogenesis and calcification in a large True Toad with a comparative survey of the timing of skeletal ossification in anurans
    Zoologischer Anzeiger, 2017
    Co-Authors: Eleonora Regueira, Maria Ailin E Odonohoe, Raul O Gomez, Gladys N. Hermida
    Abstract:

    Abstract Postembryonic skeletogenesis in anuran amphibians has been widely studied, yet less than one percent of the extant diversity has been covered and relatively few comparative studies exist. Here we document the sequence and timing of ossification of the Common Toad Rhinella arenarum , a large True Toad (Bufonidae) from South America that is a model organism for varied ongoing research. We study histological sections and cleared-and-stained specimens of an ontogenetic series ranging from early larval stages to juveniles, documenting the ossification sequence of the entire skeleton. To diminish potential environmental biases we also study the skeletogenesis of the frog Leptodactylus latinasus (Leptodactylidae) from the same pond and season. We summarize comparative data from numerous anuran species to contextualize our results in a broad phylogenetic context. Histological data shows that skeletal calcification in R. arenarum is temporally dissociated from osteoid matrix formation and occurs later than in most other anurans, which is unexpected given its generalized pond-type larva and heavily ossified adult skeleton. At the onset of metamorphosis, exoccipitals, parasphenoid, and frontoparietals are the only ossified skull elements, whereas most of the postcranium has already started ossification. This pattern is rare among anurans but is shared by other bufonids, in which it has been previously linked to rapid development. Our comparative survey, however, suggests that the delayed bufonid pattern is not related to fast-developing larvae but instead might be a distinctive feature of True Toads.

  • Intraspecific morphological variation and its implications in the taxonomic status of ‘Bufo pisanoi,’ a Pliocene anuran from eastern Argentina
    2014
    Co-Authors: Celeste Pérez M. Ben, Raul O Gomez, Ana M. Báez
    Abstract:

    ABSTRACTThe True Toad family Bufonidae is one of the most speciose and widespread clades of neobatrachian anurans. Despite being well represented in South America at present, bufonids have a poor fossil record on this continent. ‘Bufo pisanoi’ from Pliocene outcrops of coastal Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, is the only extinct South American bufonid taxon recognized to date. In this study, we investigated the validity of the putative diagnostic characters of this extinct species to confirm its taxonomic status based on revision of the holotype and referred material. Comparisons with several extant bufonid species led us to include the taxon represented by this fossil material within the Rhinella marina clade, close to R. arenarum. Further comparisons and a geometric morphometric analysis based on a relatively large sample of the latter species demonstrated that the morphology of ‘B. pisanoi’ falls within the variation range of R. arenarum. Therefore, we consider that the names ‘B. pisanoi’ and R. arenarum represent the same taxon, with the latter having priority. This work emphasizes the importance of considering intraspecific variation whenever possible, because this leads to a more rigorous approach to the identification of fossil specimens and tests the taxonomic value of different osteological characters.SUPPLEMENTAL DATA—Supplemental materials are available for this article for free at www.tandfonline.com/UJVP

Ana Maria Baez - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

Brice P Noonan - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • around the world in 10 million years biogeography of the nearly cosmopolitan True Toads anura bufonidae
    Global Ecology and Biogeography, 2007
    Co-Authors: Jennifer B Pramuk, Tasia Robertson, Jack W Sites, Brice P Noonan
    Abstract:

    Aim The species-rich family of True Toads (Anura: Bufonidae) has been the focus of several earlier studies investigating the biogeography of geographically widespread taxa. Herein, we employ newly developed Bayesian divergence estimate methods to investigate the biogeographical history of this group. Resulting age estimates are used to test several key temporal hypotheses including that the origin of the bufonid clade pre-dates Gondwanan vicariance (~105 million years ago, Ma). Area cladograms are also invoked to investigate the geographical origin of the family. Location Worldwide, except the Australia‐New Guinea plate, Madagascar and the Antarctic. Methods A phylogenetic hypothesis of the relationships among True Toads was derived from analysis of 2521 bp of DNA data including fragments from three mitochondrial ( 12S , tRNA val , 16S ) and two nuclear ( RAG-1 , CXCR-4 ) genes. Analysis of multiple, unlinked loci with a Bayesian method for estimating divergence times allowed us to address the timing and biogeographical history of Bufonidae. Resulting divergence estimates permitted the investigation of alternative vicariance/dispersal scenarios that have been proposed for True Toads. Results Our area cladogram resulting from phylogenetic analysis of DNA data supports a South American origin for Bufonidae. Divergence estimates indicate that the family originated earlier than had been suggested previously (78‐99 Ma). The age of the enigmatic Caribbean clade was dated to the late Palaeocene‐early Eocene. A return of bufonids to the New World in the Eocene was followed by rapid diversification and secondary expansion into South America by the early Oligocene (Rupelian). Main conclusions The South American origin of Bufonidae in the Upper Cretaceous was followed by relatively rapid expansion and radiation around the globe, ending with a return to the Americas via a Eurasian/North American land bridge in the Eocene. Though the exact route of this dispersal (Beringia or North Atlantic) remains unclear, an argument is made for the less frequently invoked North Atlantic connection. The origin of the enigmatic Caribbean lineage was found to be consistent with colonization following the bolide impact at the K/T boundary. These findings provide the first, firm foundation for understanding True Toad divergence times and their truly remarkable and global radiation.