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. 2023 May 4;18(5):e0285271.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0285271. eCollection 2023.

Systematics and phylogeography of bats of the genus Rhynchonycteris (Chiroptera: Emballonuridae): Integrating molecular phylogenetics, ecological niche modeling and morphometric data

Alejandro José Biganzoli-Rangel  1   2 , Omar Daniel Leon-Alvarado  1   2 , Lizandra Jaqueline Robe  2 , María Angélica Meza  3 , Eliécer Eduardo Gutiérrez  2 , Andressa Paladini  1   2   4
Affiliations

Systematics and phylogeography of bats of the genus Rhynchonycteris (Chiroptera: Emballonuridae): Integrating molecular phylogenetics, ecological niche modeling and morphometric data

Alejandro José Biganzoli-Rangel et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Rhynchonycteris is a monotypic genus of Embalonurid bats, whose geographic distribution extends from southern Mexico to tropical regions of the South American continent, including Trinidad and Tobago. Although species that have a wide geographic distribution are frequently revealed to be polytypic, to date, no study has evaluated the taxonomic status of populations of Rhynchonycteris naso. Thus, the aim of this study is to address the patterns of phylogeographic structure and taxonomic subdivision of R. naso using molecular phylogenetics, morphometric data and ecological niche modeling. Phylogenetic results recovered using the genes COI, Cytb, Chd1, Dby, and Usp9x, supported the monophyly of the genus Rhynchonycteris, in addition, a deep phylogeographic structure was revealed by the mitochondrial gene COI for the populations of Belize and Panama in comparison to those of South America. The PCA, and the linear morphometry indicated an apparent differentiation between the cis-Andean and trans-Andean populations. Furthermore, according to the skull morphology, at least two morphotypes were identified. Ecological niche modeling projections in the present have shown that the Andean cordillera acts as a climatic barrier between these two populations, with the depression of Yaracuy (Northwest Venezuela) being the only putative climatically suitable path that could communicate these two populations. On the other hand, projections for the last glacial maximum showed a drastic decrease in climatically suitable areas for the species, suggesting that cycles of lower temperatures played an important role in the separation of these populations.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Majority-rule tree inferred from the combined data set of embalonurid bats through a partitioned Bayesian analysis.
Bayesian posterior probabilities (> 50%) are indicated at each node with color dots. Branch lengths are proportional to the scale, given in substitutions per nucleotide.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Median-joining haplotype network of the COI sequences recovered for Rhynchonycteris naso.
Each circle represents a different haplotype, whose size is proportional to frequency. Colors subdivide haplotypes according to their sampling points as shown by the legend. Red small circles represent median vectors, and dashes in the lines connecting different haplotypes represent the number of substitutions between them.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Population pairwise differences (ΦST) among the three clusters suggested by SAMOVA for R. naso.
The color scale refers to the gradient of ΦST values, from no difference (ΦST = 0) to complete difference (ΦST = 1).
Fig 4
Fig 4. Principal Component Analysis performed with one external (forearm) and 10 craniodental measurements obtained for 121 specimens of Rhynchonycteris naso comparing the sexes.
Some specimens did not have information about the sex, and were identified as “unknown”.
Fig 5
Fig 5. Principal Component Analysis performed with one external (forearm) and 10 craniodental measurements obtained for 121 specimens of Rhynchonycteris naso comparing cis-Andean and trans-Andean populations.
Fig 6
Fig 6. Dorsal, ventral and lateral view of the skulls of R. naso.
(A-C) sex not determined, from Costa Rica (trans-Andean). (D-F) male from Colombia (trans-Andean). (G-I) male from Ecuador (trans-Andean). (J-L) male from Ecuador (cis-Andean). Photo authors (J-L): Andrea Caicedo y Cristian Poveda.
Fig 7
Fig 7. Projection of ecological niche modeling under current conditions for R. naso considered as a whole.
Fig 8
Fig 8. Projection of ecological niche modeling under current conditions for the (A) cis-Andean and (B) trans-Andean clusters of R. naso.
Fig 9
Fig 9. Projection of ecological niche modeling in the middle Holocene for the (A) cis-Andean and (B) trans-Andean clusters of R. naso.
Fig 10
Fig 10. Projection of ecological niche modeling in the last glacial maximum for the (A) cis-Andean and (B) trans-Andean clusters of of R. naso.
Fig 11
Fig 11. Projection of ecological niche modeling in the last Interglacial for the (A) cis-Andean and (B) trans-Andean clusters of R. naso.
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