Work

Phylogenetic placement of the po`o-uli Melamprosops phaeosoma based on mitochondrial DNA sequence and osteological characters

Year: 2001

Type: article

Abstract: The Po' ouli (Melamprosops phaeosoma) is a small oscine songbird first discovered on Maui in the early 1970s and originally described as a member of the Drepanidini (Hawaiian honeycreepers).A recent study suggested that the Po' ouli may not be a drepanidine because it lacks most of a small set of drepanidine synapomorphies (e.g., specialized tongue morphology and distinctive odor).We conducted phylogenetic analyses of the Po' ouli and a number of drepanidine and potentially related songbird taxa.Our character sets included mitochondrial DNA sequences (obtained for Me-Zamprosops via PCR of DNA isolated from museum specimens) and osteological characters.Analyses support the placement of the Po' ouli within the drepanidine clade, although the position of the Po' ouli within the clade is not strongly supported by either data set.Our results indicate that the Po' ouli is relatively distinct phylogenetically among drepanidines.If a goal of biodiversity conservation is to retain as much genetic diversity as possible then the Po' ouli should be considered a species of very high priority for conservation efforts.

Source: Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida)

Authors: Robert C. Fleischer, Cheryl L. Tarr, Helen F. James, Beth Slikas, Charles E. McIntosh

Language: English

Topic: Evolution and Paleontology Studies

Subfield: Paleontology

Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Society

OpenAlex ID: W409997614

FWCI: 1.021

Cites:

Cited by: 24

Related to: 10