_Evolution of diets in Phyllostomidae: a contribution based on molecular phylogeny data
__XVth International Bat Research Conference, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic, 23rd-27th August 2010.
Gager Y., Botero F. & Douzery E. Institute of Evolutionary Sciences, Montpellier, France
Phyllostomidae is one of the most exciting mammalian families to study given its high number of species and diversity of diets (e.g., frugivory, nectarivory, insectivory, carnivory, hematophagy). Understanding the modalities of diet evolution in phyllostomids requires a well-resolved picture of their phylogeny. Because phylogenetic relationships within this family have been difficult to solve using only morphological traits, we here used an approach based on DNA markers. We compiled a set of mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b, 12S and 16S rRNAs, and cytochrome oxidase I) plus a nuclear gene (RAG-2) for a maximum of 120 phyllostomid species and 3 outgroups, (Pipistrellus abramus, Mystacina tuberculata and Pteronotus parnellii) available in public databases. Using maximum likelihood, we reconstructed the phylogeny thanks to a supermatrix of the concatenated mitochondrial and nuclear sequences. From this highest-likelihood tree, we estimated the ancestral character states for diets. Our results suggest that the most recent common ancestor of Phyllostomidae was omnivorous. The evolution towards strict animalivory – vertebrates (e.g. bats, frogs, lizards) + non-vertebrates (e.g. insects, spiders) – is supposed to have appeared three times independently, including once for hematophagy. Strict phytophagy (flowers, nectar, pollen, leaves, seeds) probably evolved several times independently, including once for the last common ancestor of Rhinophyllinae + Stenodermatinae. Within this clade, at least five species show an omnivorous diet, adding insects to a frugivorous regime. This could reflect an opportunistic strategy to fulfill their nutritional requirements. This study emphasizes the need of a reasonable taxonomic and genomic sampling in phyllostomids in order to better understand the evolution of their life history traits. Our approach can be extrapolated for future investigations on systematics and evolutionary ecology of other bats.