Investigations of Phylogenetic Relationships of the Percidae (Actinopterygii: Perciformes) Using Comparative DNA Sequences
Darters are a diverse monophyletic lineage of the freshwater fish family Percidae. The majority of percid species (91%) are darters, which are endemic to North America. This investigation attempts to resolve phylogenetic relationships of percid fishes at three hierarchical levels. First, complete sequences from two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and 16S rRNA) and a portion of a single-copy nuclear gene (Tmo-4C4) were used to estimate phylogenetic relationships among percid genera. Hypotheses resulting from phylogenetic analyses identify three monophyletic lineages of percid fishes, the Luciopercinae (Stizostedion, Zingel, and Romanichthys), the Percinae (Perca and Gymnocephalus), and the Etheostomatinae (Etheostoma, Percina, Ammocrypta, and Crystallaria). However, relationships among these three lineages are unresolved with this dataset. Second, complete mitochondrial encoded cytochrorne b sequences were used to investigate the phylogenetic relationships of the darter genus Percina . Three of eight polytypic subgenera are not monophyletic and the condition of hyperbenthic habitat is characteristic of derived Percina lineages. The phylogenetic relationships of Percina indicate that features previously hypothesized to be ancestral for darters, such as drab coloration and large body size, may be derived. Third, the phylogeography of Percina evides was investigated with complete cytochrorne b sequences. Levels of sequence divergence between populations distributed east and west of the Mississippi River are high and the phylogeny of populations supports a pre-Pleistocene vicariance hypothesis to explain the current disjunct distribution of P. evides.
University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign