Signatures of Microevolutionary Processes in Phylogenetic Patterns

Authored by Carolina L N Costa, Paula Lemos-Costa, Flavia M D Marquitti, Lucas D Fernandes, Marlon F Ramos, David M Schneider, Ayana B Martins, Aguiar Marcus A M de

Date Published: 2019

DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syy049

Sponsors: Brazilian Ministry of Education (CAPES) Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)

Platforms: Fortran

Model Documentation: Other Narrative Mathematical description

Model Code URLs: https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.4kn5j5d

Abstract

Phylogenetic trees are representations of evolutionary relationships among species and contain signatures of the processes responsible for the speciation events they display. Inferring processes from tree properties, however, is challenging. To address this problem, we analyzed a spatially-explicit model of speciation where genome size and mating range can be controlled. We simulated parapatric and sympatric (narrow and wide mating range, respectively) radiations and constructed their phylogenetic trees, computing structural properties such as tree balance and speed of diversification. We showed that parapatric and sympatric speciation are well separated by these structural tree properties. Balanced trees with constant rates of diversification only originate in sympatry and genome size affected both the balance and the speed of diversification of the simulated trees. Comparison with empirical data showed that most of the evolutionary radiations considered to have developed in parapatry or sympatry are in good agreement with model predictions. Even though additional forces other than spatial restriction of gene flow, genome size, and genetic incompatibilities, do play a role in the evolution of species formation, the microevolutionary processes modeled here capture signatures of the diversification pattern of evolutionary radiations, regarding the symmetry and speed of diversification of lineages.

Tags

Individual-based model Evolution models Dynamics Diversity Diversification speciation Origin Adaptive radiation Neutral theory Genome Diversification rates Parapatry Sympatry Evolutionary radiation