Unraveling the diversification history of grasshoppers belonging to the ``Trimerotropis pallidipennis'' (Oedipodinae: Acrididae) species group: hotspot of biodiversity in Central Andes

GUZMÁN N. V.; PIETROKOVSKY, S; CIGLIANO, MM; CONFALONIERI V.A.

PeerJ

PeerJ Inc.

Lugar: California; Año: 2017

2167-8359

The Andean Mountain range has been recognized as one of the biodiversity hotspots of the world. The proposed mechanisms for such species diversification, among others, are the elevation processes occurring during the Miocene and the intensive glacial action during the Pleistocene. In this study we investigated the diversification history of the grasshopper Trimerotropis pallidipennis species complex through the Central Andes and specifically intended to clarify the status of T. andeana and its relationship to other Trimerotropis species.Phylogenetics, biogeographic and molecular clock analyses using a multi-locus dataset revealed that in Peru there are at least two, and possibly four evolutionary significant units). Two different stocks -originated from a common ancestor from North/Central America- would have dispersed toward southern latitudes favored by the closure of the Panama Isthmus giving rise to two lineages, the coastal and mountain lineages, which still coexist in Peru (i.e. T. pallidipennis and T. andeana). Subsequent vicariant and dispersal events continued the differentiation process giving rise to three to six genetic lineages (i.e. clades) detected in this study, which were geographically restricted to locations dispersed over the Andes Mountains in South America.Our results provide another interesting example of ?island diversification? motored by the topography plus unstable climatic conditions during the Pleistocene, pointing out the presence of a hotspot of diversification in the Andean region of Peru.