Description of the Three Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of (, and ) and Phylogenetic Relationship (Aves: Sittidae).

Nuthatches (genus ; family Sittidae) are a passerine genus with a predominantly Nearctic and Eurasian distribution. To understand the phylogenetic position of and phylogenetic relations within this genus, we sequenced the complete mitochondrial genomes of three species (, and ), which were 16,822-16,830 bp in length and consisted of 37 genes and a control region. This study recovered the same gene arrangement found in the mitogenomes of , which is considered the typical ancestral avian gene order. All tRNAs were predicted to form the typical cloverleaf secondary structures. Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood phylogenetic analyses of sequences of 18 species obtained a well-supported topology. The family Sittidae is the sister group of Troglodytidae, and the genus can be divided into three major clades. We demonstrated the phylogenetic relationships within the genus ( + (( + ) + ( + ( + )))).