In or out-of-Madagascar?--Colonization patterns for large-bodied diving beetles (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae).

ABSTRACT: High species diversity and endemism within Madagascar is mainly the result of species radiations following colonization from nearby continents or islands. Most of the endemic taxa are thought to be descendants of a single or small number of colonizers that arrived from Africa sometime during the Cenozoic and gave rise to highly diverse groups. This pattern is largely based on vertebrates and a small number of invertebrate groups. Knowledge of the evolutionary history of aquatic beetles on Madagascar is lacking, even though this species-rich group is often a dominant part of invertebrate freshwater communities in both standing and running water. Here we focus on large bodied diving beetles of the tribes Hydaticini and Cybistrini. Our aims with this study were to answer the following questio

SUBMITTER: Bukontaite R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4368551 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature