Revisiting proboscidean phylogeny and evolution through total evidence and palaeogenetic analyses including Notiomastodon ancient DNA
Sina Baleka, Luciano Varela, P. Sebastián Tambusso, Johanna L. A. Paijmans, Dimila Mothé, Thomas W. Stafford, Richard A. Fariña, Michael Hofreiter
Abstract
as a sister taxon to Elephantidae, with a divergence time of ∼13.5 Ma. Additionally, a total evidence analysis combining morphological and paleogenetic data shows that the three most diverse clades within Proboscidea diverged during the early Miocene, coinciding with the formation of a land passage between Africa and Eurasia. Our results are a further step toward aDNA analyses on Pleistocene samples from subtropical regions and provide a framework for proboscidean evolution.
Topics & Concepts
Evolutionary biologyPhylogeneticsAncient DNABiologyGeneticsMedicineGeneEnvironmental healthPopulationGenetic diversity and population structureGenomics and Phylogenetic StudiesForensic and Genetic Research