Molecular systematics and biogeography of the Cockatoos (Psittaciformes: Cacatuidae)

Auk, The, Jan 1999 by Brown, David M, Toft, Catherine A

Moreover, the ranges of the species of Cacatua in the two subclades present a pattern (Fig. 8) suggestive of two separate radiations of Cacatua ancestors northward from the continent of Australia, if the mtDNA data represent the true phylogeny. As we discussed above, in the "galerita" clade, Cacatua galerita is widespread in eastern Australia and on much of the island of New Guinea, with C. alba, C. moluccensis, and C. sulphurea occurring on islands to the east of New Guinea, and C. ophthalmica occurring on islands to the west of New Guinea. Similarly, in the "corella" clade, C. (Licmetis) sanguinea occurs widely in Australia and on part of New Guinea; its presumed sister species, C. tenuirostris, also occurs in Australia but has a more restricted range. The species C. goffini (on Tanimbar), C. haematuropygia (on the Philippines), and C. ducorpsii (on the Solomon Islands) occur on islands on either side of New Guinea. However, hypotheses concerning the divergence of these species are more uncertain because of the unresolved trichotomy in that subclade. In summary, the mtDNA phylogeny of the cockatoos reveals distinct biogeographic patterns that are consonant with patterns seen in distantly related taxa and that match hypotheses on the tectonic history of the Australasian region.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank C. Langley, M. Sanderson, M. Dixon, and M. Plotkin for helping with the molecular biology and phylogenetic analysis. J. Halverson, A. Romagnano, D. Rimlinger, S. Healy, B. Speer, L. Tell, D. Gordon, and B. Arbon provided cockatoo material. A. de Boer, H. Duffels, T. Frazier, L. Joseph, T. Low, C. Nice, R. Zink, and two anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on the manuscript. This study was supported by NSF grants GER 90-23789 to C. Toft and DEB 95-09548 to C. Langley.

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