Date of Award

Fall 2004

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Biological Sciences

Program/Concentration

Biology

Committee Director

Kent Carpenter

Committee Member

John Holsinger

Committee Member

Christopher Osgood

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.B46 S58 2004

Abstract

The species level taxonomy of the Nemipteridae is well understood but existing morphological data is insufficient to hypothesize a phylogeny of the five genera of this family of percoid fishes. Furthermore, there are three distinct and widely disparate habitat requirements within nemipterids and little is known how these evolved. Species in the genera Pentapodus, Scaevius and Scolopsis are typically found around shallow reefs. Nemipterus species are also found in shallow-water, but they inhabit strictly soft sediment bottoms. Parascolopsis is the only deep-water genus and its species are also found over soft sediments. Complete cytochrome b gene sequences (1140 base pairs) for 15 species of Nemipteridae, including representatives of all genera, and for two outgroup species were used to infer a phylogeny. There is strong support for a monophyletic Nemipteridae. In addition, two major clades within Nemipteridae are well supported. One of these clades exclusively contains shallow, soft sediment Nemipterus species while the other clade comprises the shallow, reef and the deep, soft sediment genera. The deepwater soft bottom Parascolopsis is nested deep within the other major clade and not sister to Nemipterus. The closest relatives of nemipterids, the sparoid fishes, are primarily reef species and the most parsimonious explanation is that the common ancestor to all these families is also a hard bottom inhabitant. The radiation of soft sediment species within the monophyletic Nemipteridae therefore represents two independent acquisitions.

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DOI

10.25777/kg36-bh44

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