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Timing and Pattern of Early Diversification in Drosophilidae (Diptera)
Guilherme Rezende Dias1, Eduardo Guimarães Dupim1,2, Thyago Vanderlinde1
1Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-617, Brazil.
Molecular Biology and Evolution
|October 23, 2025
Summary
This study reveals that the fly family Drosophilidae is not monophyletic, with Braula coeca needing taxonomic revision. Early diversification occurred near the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genomics
- Taxonomy
Background:
- Drosophilidae (fruit flies) are crucial model organisms, but their early evolutionary history is unclear.
- Previous research has primarily focused on the Drosophila genus, leaving broader diversification patterns unresolved.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reconstruct the evolutionary relationships and divergence times of Drosophilidae using a phylogenomic approach.
- To investigate the monophyly of Drosophilidae and its subfamilies (Drosophilinae and Steganinae).
Main Methods:
- Phylogenomic analysis of 33 taxa, including 27 drosophilid species and related families.
- Fossil-calibrated Bayesian inference to estimate divergence times and evolutionary rates.
Main Results:
- Drosophilidae is not monophyletic, with Braula coeca (Braulidae) nested within Steganinae, necessitating taxonomic revision.
- Drosophilinae was recovered as monophyletic, but relationships within some lineages (e.g., Scaptodrosophila) remain uncertain due to gene tree heterogeneity.
- The family originated around the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary (67.3 Ma), with subfamilies diversifying in the Eocene (56–34 Ma).
Conclusions:
- The current classification of Drosophilidae requires revision based on new phylogenetic evidence.
- Early diversification of Drosophilidae occurred around major geological boundaries, coinciding with significant environmental changes.
- Evolutionary rates estimated from fossil calibrations are lower than mutation-derived rates, suggesting the influence of selection and generation time uncertainty.
