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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
Origin and diversification of the Greater Cape flora: Ancient species repository, hot-bed of recent radiation, or both?
Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, Volume 51, No. 1, Year 2009
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Description
Like island-endemic taxa, whose origins are expected to postdate the appearance of the islands on which they occur, biome-endemic taxa should be younger than the biomes to which they are endemic. Accordingly, the ages of biome-endemic lineages may offer insights into biome history. In this study, we used the ages of multiple lineages to explore the origin and diversification of two southern African biomes whose remarkable floristic richness and endemism has identified them as global biodiversity hotspots (succulent karoo and fynbos). We used parsimony optimization to identify succulent karoo- and fynbos-endemic lineages across 17 groups of plants, for which dated phylogenies had been inferred using a relaxed Bayesian (BEAST) approach. All succulent karoo-endemic lineages were less than 17.5 My old, the majority being younger than 10 My. This is largely consistent with suggestions that this biome is the product of recent radiation, probably triggered by climatic deterioration since the late Miocene. In contrast, fynbos-endemic lineages showed a broader age distribution, with some lineages originating in the Oligocene, but most being more recent. Also, in groups having both succulent karoo- and fynbos-endemic lineages, there was a tendency for the latter to be older. These patterns reflect the greater antiquity of fynbos, but also indicate considerable recent speciation, probably through a combination of climatically-induced refugium fragmentation and adaptive radiation. © 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Authors & Co-Authors
Verboom, George Anthony
South Africa, Cape Town
University of Cape Town
Archibald, Jenny K.
United States, Lawrence
Natural History Museum
Bakker, Freek T.
Netherlands, Leiden
National Herbarium of the Netherlands - Nhn
Bellstedt, Dirk Uwe
South Africa, Stellenbosch
Stellenbosch University
Conrad, Ferozah
South Africa, Pretoria
South African National Biodiversity Institute
Dreyer, Léanne Laurette
South Africa, Stellenbosch
Stellenbosch University
Forest, Félix
United Kingdom, Richmond
Jodrell Laboratory
Galley, Chloé A.
Switzerland, Zurich
Universität Zürich
Goldblatt, Peter
United States, St. Louis
Missouri Botanical Garden
Henning, Jack F.
United States, New York
The Graduate Center
Mummenhoff, Klaus
Germany, Osnabruck
Osnabrück University
Linder, Hans Peter
Switzerland, Zurich
Universität Zürich
Muasya, A. Muthama
South Africa, Cape Town
University of Cape Town
Oberlander, Kenneth C.
South Africa, Stellenbosch
Stellenbosch University
Savolainen, Vincent
United Kingdom, London
Imperial College London
Snijman, Deirdré A.
South Africa, Claremont
Compton Herbarium
van der Niet, Timotheüs
South Africa, Durban
University of Kwazulu-natal
Nowell, Tracey L.
South Africa, Cape Town
University of Cape Town
South Africa, Pretoria
South African National Biodiversity Institute
Statistics
Citations: 216
Authors: 18
Affiliations: 13
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1016/j.ympev.2008.01.037
ISSN:
10557903
e-ISSN:
10959513
Research Areas
Cancer
Environmental