Evolution and diversification of the Southern Chilean genus Ceroglossus (Coleoptera, Carabidae) during the Pleistocene glaciations

Abstract

The Quaternary glaciations affected the evolution and current distribution of taxa in southern Chile, including the emblematic and endemic genus Ceroglossus Solier. This genus of ground beetles has fascinated a great number of entomologists due to their conspicuous colour patterns, but despite this attention their taxonomy has remained controversial, with a large amount of taxa described based on unclear or variable morphological characters. In this work, we carry out a phylogenetic analysis of the 10 described species of Ceroglossus, based on mitochondrial and nuclear markers, and perform a species delimitation analysis using different algorithms, to clarify the backbone of their evolutionary tree and to lay the basis for a comprehensive and integrative taxonomic revision of this genus. Our results show that Ceroglossus is divided in five main lineages, composed of 13 putative phylogenetic species. The five lineages diverged before the Quaternary, while the divergence of the species within each lineage occurred during the glaciations and followed a parallel pattern among the different lineages. Additionally, we carry out an evolutionary interpretation of the revised available chromosomal data to shed light on the mechanisms that promoted their diversification.