Arctander P, Fjeldså J
Department of Population Biology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
EXS. 1994;68:205-25. doi: 10.1007/978-3-0348-8510-2_17.
Tapaculos of the genus Scytalopus are secretive birds which tunnel like mice through dense understory of humid forest in the Andes, Central America, and south-eastern Brazil. Their agoraphobic habits make Scytalopus species highly sensitive to habitat discontinuities, so they are well suited for analyzing diversification patterns in montane forest biota. This study uses DNA sequence data to test hypotheses about past speciation events. The DNA data support that allopatric and parapatric populations with different songs represent different species. The high degree of phylogenetic resolution obtained by DNA-data permits a better description of geographical patterns of endemism. The data suggests that the commonly observed biogeographic pattern, where related species have long linear distributions along the Andes in different altitudinal zones, arose by divergence in disjunct isolates rather than by parapatric divergence. The approach seems well suited for identifying areas that have a special role for the diversification process. The paper finally discusses how detailed phylogenetic studies can be used to test interpretations of biogeographic patterns of high relevance for pinpointing top priority areas for conservation.
斯氏窜鸟属的窜鸟是隐秘的鸟类，它们像老鼠一样在安第斯山脉、中美洲和巴西东南部潮湿森林的茂密林下植被中穿梭。它们惧怕空旷的习性使得斯氏窜鸟属物种对栖息地的间断高度敏感，因此它们非常适合用于分析山地森林生物群的多样化模式。本研究使用DNA序列数据来检验关于过去物种形成事件的假设。DNA数据支持具有不同鸣声的异域和邻域种群代表不同物种这一观点。通过DNA数据获得的高度系统发育分辨率能够更好地描述特有现象的地理模式。数据表明，常见的生物地理模式，即相关物种在不同海拔区域沿着安第斯山脉呈长直线分布，是由间断隔离种群的分化而非邻域分化产生的。该方法似乎非常适合识别在多样化过程中具有特殊作用的区域。论文最后讨论了如何利用详细的系统发育研究来检验对生物地理模式的解释，这些解释对于确定保护的重中之重区域具有高度相关性。
