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Updated: Jun 9, 2025

Using Phylogenetic Analysis to Investigate Eukaryotic Gene Origin
Published on: August 14, 2018
A comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the genus Sylvirana (Anura: Ranidae) highlights unrecognized diversity,
Yun-He Wu1, Man-Hao Xu2, Chatmongkon Suwannapoom3
1Key Laboratory of Genetic Evolution and Animal Models, and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Biodiversity and Ecological Conservation of Gaoligong Mountain, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China; Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yezin, Nay Pyi Taw 05282, Myanmar.
Abstract:
The genus Sylvirana includes 12 species widely distributed in South China and Southeast Asia. The phylogenetic relationships and species diversity for Sylvirana and allied genera remain unresolved and controversial due to insufficient data and incomplete taxon sampling. Using a combined dataset of mitochondrial genes (16S and COI) and 101 nuclear genes obtained through the amplicon sequence capture approach, we generated the most comprehensive phylogenetic analysis for the genus Sylvirana to date, inferring diversity, phylogenetic relationships, and historical biogeography with unprecedented levels of taxon and geographic sampling. Our results conservatively reveal six undescribed species, mostly distributed in peninsular Indochina. Phylogenetic analyses strongly support the non-monophyly of Sylvirana with respect to Pterorana. Additionally, phylogenetic results place Sylvirana guentheri and Pelophylax lateralis into genus Humerana, supporting the inclusion of Hylarana latouchii, Papurana milleti, and Hylarana attigua within Pterorana + Sylvirana. The long-disputed species of Hylarana bannanica (previously Sylvirana) cluster with genus Papurana. Because the results of multiple non-monophyletic genera create taxonomic confusion, we suggest relegating all genera to subgenus rank of Hylarana. Sylvirana is a junior synonym of the Pterorana. Biogeographically, we trace the origin of Pterorana to Southeast Asia during the early Miocene, with subsequent dispersal thereafter. Our study shows that climatic changes may have profoundly influenced the diversification of Pterorana during the Miocene.
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