Molecular phylogeny of the benthic shallow-water octopuses (Cephalopoda: Octopodinae)

Octopus has been regarded as a "catch all" genus, yet its monophyly is questionable and has been untested. We inferred a broad-scale phylogeny of the benthic shallow-water octopuses (subfamily Octopodinae) using amino acid sequences of two mitochondrial DNA genes: Cytochrome oxidase subunit III and Cytochrome b apoenzyme, and the nuclear DNA gene Elongation Factor-1alpha. Sequence data were obtained from 26 Octopus species and from four related genera. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian approaches were implemented to estimate the phylogeny, and non-parametric bootstrapping was used to verify confidence for Bayesian topologies. Phylogenetic relationships between closely related species were generally well resolved, and groups delineated, but the genes did not resolve deep divergences well. The phylogenies indicated strongly that Octopus is not monophyletic, but several monophyletic groups were identified within the genus. It is therefore clear that octopodid systematics requires major revision.