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

Abstract

Rhynchonycterisis 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 ofRhynchonycteris naso. Thus, the aim of this study is to address the patterns of phylogeographic structure and taxonomic subdivision ofR.nasousing molecular phylogenetics, morphometric data and ecological niche modeling. Phylogenetic results recovered using the genesCOI,Cytb,Chd1,Dby, and Usp9x, supported the monophyly of the genusRhynchonycteris, in addition, a deep phylogeographic structure was revealed by the mitochondrial geneCOIfor 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.