The phylogenetic validity of Puccinia and Uromyces, Pucciniaceae, and closely related genera was evaluated using nucLSU rDNA sequences. Using a wide range of rust species with different life cycles and with different host specificities, Puccinia and Uromyces were shown to be highly polyphyletic and to also include representatives of the genera Aecidium, Cumminsiella, Dietelia, Endophyllum, Miya...

Phylogenetic relationships among families of Atheriniformes have long been problematic. The affinities of one of the most enigmatic lineages, surf silversides (Notocheiridae), have proven particularly elusive due to this taxon's unique morphology and rarity in museum collections. In this study, we use mitochondrial and nuclear sequence data to generate a phylogeny for seven of the eight familie...

AB STRACT.– Phylo gen etic anal y sis of mi to chon drial gene se quence vari a tion in geoemydid tur tles sug gests that the ge nus Geoemyda as cur rently rec og nized is polyphyletic, and that Geoemyda yuwonoi is the sis ter taxon to Notochelys platynota (but the two are highly ge net i cally di ver gent). We herein place Geoemyda yuwonoi in a new monotypic ge nus, Leucocephalon, dis tin guis...

Molecular phylogenetic analyses have greatly changed Neotropical avian systematics in the past couple of decades. These new phylogenies provide the necessary framework to study the ecology and natural history of species in the region in an evolutionary context. This study addresses the systematics of Poospiza, Compsospiza, Hemispingus, Thlypopsis, and eight monotypic genera, which form a strong...

Larvae of anadromous rainbow smelt originating in various spawning tributaries are retained in the St Lawrence estuary. We proposed that these smelt represent one population genetically differentiated from adjacent populations characterized by geographically distinct larval retention areas. We also analysed four landlocked populations to evaluate the phylogenetic basis of dwarf and normal-sized...

The taxonomic relationships within the dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion) of southern Africa have long been controversial. Although informal phenotypic groups have been suggested, the evolutionary relationships among the 15 recognised species in southern Africa have not been previously investigated. To investigate the relationships among species within this genus, fragments of two mitochondrial gen...

The microscopic scissurellids are being currently revised; scissurellids is used here for the small Vetigastropoda formerly classified in Scissurelloidea, but which has been shown to be a polyphyletic assemblage (e.g., Geiger 2008, Geiger & Thacker 2005). Geiger (2003) presented an overview, where the new monotypic subfamily, genus, and species were introduced: Depressizoninae with Depressizona...

Bombyliidae (5000 sp.), or bee flies, are a lower brachyceran family of flower-visiting flies that, as larvae, act as parasitoids of other insects. The evolutionary relationships are known from a morphological analysis that yielded minimal support for higher-level groupings. We use the protein-coding gene CAD and 28S rDNA to determine phylogeny and to test the monophyly of existing subfamilies,...

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) constitute a superfamily of enzymes involved in detoxification of noxious compounds and protection against oxidative damage. GST class Phi (GSTF), one of the important classes of plant GSTs, has long been considered as plant specific but was recently found in basidiomycete fungi. However, the range of nonplant taxonomic groups containing GSTFs remains unknown. ...

Ustilago is a polyphyletic genus of smut fungi found mainly on Poaceae. The development of a taxonomy that reflects phylogeny requires subdivision of Ustilago into smaller monophyletic genera. Several separate systematic analyses have determined that Macalpinomyces mackinlayi, M. tubiformis, Tolyposporella pachycarpa, Ustilago bouriquetii and U. maydis, occupy a unique phylogenetic position wit...