A combined morphological and molecular phylogeny of the genus Chironius Fitzinger, 1826 (Serpentes: Colubridae). (9th June 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Klaczko, Julia; Montingelli, Giovanna G.; Zaher, Hussam
• Is Part Of: Zoological journal of the Linnean Society. Volume 171:Number 3(2014:Jul.)
• Page Start: 656
• Page End: 667
• Publication Date: 2014-06-09
• Subjects: Zoology -- Periodicals; 590
• DOI: 10.1111/zoj.12147
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0024-4082

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p> <italic>Chironius</italic> is one of the most speciose genera of the South American colubrid snakes. Although the genus represents a well‐known radiation of diurnal racers, its monophyly, affinities with other Neotropical colubrid genera, and intrageneric relationships are open questions. Here, we present a phylogenetic analysis of <italic>Chironius</italic> based on a data matrix that combines one nuclear (<italic>c‐mos</italic>) and two mitochondrial (<italic>12S</italic> and <italic>16S</italic> rRNA) genes with 37 morphological characters derived from scutellation, skull, and hemipenial features. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred using maximum parsimony (MP) and maximum likelihood (ML). Our combined morphological and molecular analyses strongly support the monophyly of the genus <italic>Chironius</italic> and its sister‐group relationship with a clade formed by the genera <italic>Dendrophidion</italic> and <italic>Drymobius</italic>. Phylogenetic relationships within the genus <italic>Chironius</italic> is still controversial, although five clades are retrieved with medium to strong support. © 2014 The Linnean Society of London</p> </abstract>