The Late Miocene radiation of modern Felidae: A genetic assessment

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2006

Authors

Johnson, WE (Author) Other; Eizirik, E (Author) Other; Pecon Slattery, J (Author) Other; Murphy, WJ (Author) Other; Agostinho Antunes (Author) REIT; Teeling, E (Author) Other; O'Brien, SJ (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Science

Vol. 311

Pages: 73-77

ISSN: 0036-8075

Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 519 Citations

Scopus - 572 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-004-NQF

DOI: 10.1126/science.1122277

Abstract (EN): Modern fetid species descend from relatively recent (<11 million years ago) divergence and speciation events that produced successful predatory carnivores worldwide but that have confounded taxonomic classifications. A highly resolved molecular phylogeny with divergence dates for all living cat species, derived from autosomal, X-linked, Y-linked, and mitochondrial gene segments (22,789 base pairs) and 16 fossil calibrations define eight principal lineages produced through at least 10 intercontinental migrations facilitated by sea-level fluctuations. A ghost lineage analysis indicates that available fetid fossils underestimate (i.e., unrepresented basal branch length) first occurrence by an average of 76%, revealing a low representation of fetid lineages in paleontological remains. The phylogenetic performance of distinct gene classes showed that Y-chromosome segments are appreciably more informative than mitochondrial DNA, X-linked, or autosomal genes in resolving the rapid Felidae species radiation.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 5