Around the World in 26 Million Years: Diversification and Biogeography of Pantropical Grass‐Yellow Eurema Butterflies (Pieridae: Coliadinae)

• DOI: 10.1111/jbi.15107
• Publication Date: 2025-02-22T09:55:41Z
• Authors: Jing V. Leong; Pável Matos‐Maraví; Rayner Núñez; Renato Nunes; Weijun Liang; Michael F. Braby; Tenzing Doleck; Kwaku Aduse‐Poku; Yutaka Inayoshi; Yu‐Feng Hsu; Niklas Wahlberg; Djunijanti Peggie; Alma B. Mohagan; Dave P. Mohagan; Julio A. Genaro; Antonio R. Perez‐...; Krushnamegh Kunte; Dino J. Martins; Szabolcs Sáfián; Akito Y. Kawahara; Naomi E. Pierce; David J. Lohman
• Keywords: Pantropical; Pieridae

ABSTRACT Aim Grass‐yellow butterflies ( Eurema ) are a group of pantropical Pieridae distributed throughout Asia, Australasia, Africa and the New World. However, little is known about their diversification, including biogeographic mechanism(s) explaining circumglobal distribution. We present first densely sampled, time‐calibrated phylogeny reconstruction grass‐yellows to confirm monophyly genera, re‐evaluate taxonomy infer events contributing worldwide Location Global tropics subtropics. Taxon The butterfly tribe Euremini (Pieridae: Coliadinae). Methods analysed up 391 genetic loci from 126 samples 66 ingroup species. Divergence dating was accomplished in Bayesian phylogenetic framework using secondary calibration points, maximum likelihood models various were fitted data R package BioGeoBEARS. used best fitting model estimate relative dispersal with biogeographical stochastic mapping. Finally, we estimated branch‐specific speciation extinction rates assess diversification history group. Results Different phylogenomic analyses converged on similar topologies robust support. Grass‐yellows emerged ca . 26 Mya World, single extant lineage dispersed Asia early Miocene, where they diversified Australasia. fastest occurred Old World during late Miocene. Many grass‐yellow genera either paraphyletic or polyphyletic as traditionally circumscribed. To maintain nomenclatural stability, place all sensu lato recognise two subgenera: Abaeis ). Main Conclusions originated Americas attained global distributional patterns via dispersal. Indo‐Australian Caribbean archipelagoes seem have accelerated group, movement out these island regions frequent. Although traditional view founder‐event envisions migrants large landmasses (‘mainland’) colonising smaller (‘islands’), find that mainland differentiation equally more common.