Many processes of biological diversification can simultaneously affect multiple evolu- tionary lineages. Examples include multiple members of a gene family diverging when a region of a chromosome is duplicated, multiple viral strains diverging at a “super- spreading” event, and a geological event fragmenting whole communities of species. It is difficult to test for patterns of shared divergences predicted by such processes because...

Recent studies have highlighted the underestimated diversity of the genus Diploderma Hallowell, 1861 in the Hengduan Mountain Region in Southwest China, but much of the region remains poorly surveyed for reptile diversity. In this study we describe two new species of Diploderma from the upper Jinsha and middle Yalong River Valley, based on evaluations of morphological, genetic, and distribution data. The two...

The genus Boiga includes 35, primarily arboreal snake species distributed from the Middle East to Australia and many islands in the western Pacific, with particularly high species diversity in South-East Asia. Despite including the iconic mangrove snakes (Boiga dendrophila complex) and the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis; infamous for avian extinctions on small islands of the Pacific), species-level phylogenetic relationships and the...

We report on the first molecular estimates of phylogenetic relationships of Brachymeles dalawangdaliri (Scincidae) and Pseudogekko isapa (Gekkonidae), and present new data on phenotypic variation in these two poorly known taxa, endemic to the Romblon Island Group of the central Philippines. Because both species were recently described on the basis of few, relatively older, museum specimens collected in the early 1970s (when...

Recent phylogenetic studies of gekkonid lizards have revealed unexpected, widespread paraphyly and polyphyly among genera, unclear generic boundaries, and a tendency towards the nesting of taxa exhibiting specialized, apomorphic morphologies within geographically widespread “generalist” clades. This is especially true in Australasia, where monophyly of Gekko proper has been questioned with respect to phenotypically ornate flap- legged geckos of the genus Luperosaurus, the...

An integrative taxonomic analysis of the Ptychozoon lionotum group across its range in Indochina and Sundaland recovers P. lionotum sensu lato Annandale, 1905 as paraphyletic with respect to P. popaense Grismer, Wood, Thura, Grismer, Brown, & Stuart, 2018a and composed of four allopatric, genetically divergent, ND2 mitochondrial lineages. Multivariate and univariate analyses of continuous and discrete morphological and color pattern characters statistically...

The genera Lepidothyris, Lygosoma and Mochlus comprise the writhing or supple skinks, a group of semi-fossorial, elongate-bodied skinks distributed across the Old World Tropics. Due to their generalized morphology and lack of diagnostic characters, species- and clade-level relationships have long been debated. Recent molecular phylogenetic studies of the group have provided some clarification of species-level relationships, but a number of issues regarding...

Although the genus Japalura s.l. has long been recognized as paraphyletic based on limited genetic sampling, its problematic taxonomy has not been revised, and phylogenetic relationships among the majority of congeners remain unknown. Here we utilize a densely sampled dataset of both multilocus genetic and morphological data to provide the first phylogenetic inference of relationships among Japalura s.l. species. Our results show...

Recent higher-level frog phylogenetic analyses have included a few members of the endemic Philippine frog genus Sanguirana. Although the monophyly of the group has never been disputed, the recent phylogenetically-supported inclusion of the Palawan Wood Frog (Sanguirana sanguinea) in this clade was highly unexpected. In addition, species boundaries and relationships remain unclear and new species continue to be discovered. We estimate the...

Pre-existing female biases are female preferences for a particular trait that evolved prior to the evolution of that trait. Phylogenies are needed to show when the preference and trait have originated. In several live-bearing fishes (Poeciliidae), females show pre-existing biases for male swords, a colorful extension of the caudal fin. Here, we investigated the pre-existing bias hypothesis by predicting preferences for a...

The family of live-bearing fish, Poeciliidae, includes a wide variety of colors and body shapes, one interesting variation in shape is the elongated tail found on the males of a few species. The purpose of these extended tails, or swordtails, has long been debated by biologists. Scientists in the biology department at the University of Oklahoma decided to test a hypothesis that...