根據現生物種的地理分布資訊, 對寒冷氣候的耐受性及其在分子親緣關係架構中的保守性推測藍灰蝶起源於亞洲大陸並經由白令陸橋播遷至新世界

文獻來源: Vila R, Bell CD, Macniven R, Goldman-Huertas B, Ree RH, Marshall CR, Bálint Z, Johnson K, Benyamini D, Pierce NE. 2011. Phylogeny and palaeoecology of Polyommatus blue butterflies show Beringia was a climate-regulated gateway to the New World. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 278(1719): 2737-2744. [link]

Abstract
Transcontinental dispersals by organisms usually represent improbable events that constitute a major challenge for biogeographers. By integrating molecular phylogeny, historical biogeography and palaeoecology, we test a bold hypothesis proposed by Vladimir Nabokov regarding the origin of Neotropical Polyommatus blue butterflies, and show that Beringia has served as a biological corridor for the dispersal of these insects from Asia into the New World. We present a novel method to estimate ancestral temperature tolerances using distribution range limits of extant organisms, and find that climatic conditions in Beringia acted as a decisive filter in determining which taxa crossed into the New World during five separate invasions over the past 11 Myr. Our results reveal a marked effect of the Miocene–Pleistocene global cooling, and demonstrate that palaeoclimatic conditions left a strong signal on the ecology of present-day taxa in the New World. The phylogenetic conservatism in thermal tolerances that we have identified may permit the reconstruction of the palaeoecology of ancestral organisms, especially mobile taxa that can easily escape from hostile environments rather than adapt to them.

以形態特徵重建狹義星燈蛾屬(Utetheisa s. str.)的親緣關係顯示Utetheisa與Pitasila亞屬為姐妹群, 但Atasca亞屬則可能不屬星燈蛾, 而新世界物種則起源自亞洲

文獻來源: DaCosta MA. 2010. Phylogeny of Utetheisa s. str. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Arctiinae) with comments on the evolution of colour, hind wing scales and origin of New World species. Invertebrate Systematics 24: 113-130.

Abstract
Species of Utetheisa Hübner incorporate pyrrolizidine alkaloids into their defence strategy where they are protective against both invertebrate and vertebrate predators, and courtship behaviours by males incorporate the alkaloids into their pheromones. Although Utetheisa’s chemical ecology is well understood, the systematics is less clear. A phylogeny of Utetheisa was constructed based on adult morphology. The final data matrix consisted of 29 species and 105 characters (268 states) from adults scored from both nongenitalic and genitalic characters as follows: 3 head (8 states), 4 leg (8 states), 21 wing (49 states), 44 male abdominal and genitalic characters (124 states), and 33 female abdominal and genitalic characters (79 states). The resulting parsimony and Bayesian analyses demonstrated that Utetheisa s. str. is monophyletic and sister to U. Pitasila (Moore). UtetheisaAtasca (Swinhoe) is more closely related to outgroup taxa than it is to other Utetheisa species. Monophyly of Utetheisa s. str. is strongly supported by a posterior probability of 0.98. Colour was lost once and male wing androconia evolved independently in several species, all of which feed on hosts in Boraginaceae. Forbes’ hypothesis of an Old World origin for the genus is corroborated and two origins for New World species are supported.

由於東亞特有的銀蛇目蝶切入Euptychiina亞族的親緣關係使得一個新的東亞-北美間斷分布案例被發現

圖片來源：ashung

文獻來源：Pen˜ a, C., Nylin, S., Freitas, A. V. L. & Wahlberg, N. (2010). Biogeographic history of the butterfly subtribe Euptychiina (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae).—Zoologica Scripta, 39, 243–258.
doi:10.1111/j.1463-6409.2010.00421.x

蛺蝶科眼蝶亞科中具高多樣性的Euptychiina亞族過去被認為局限分布在美洲地區。然而，新的證據將東方區的銀蛇 目蝶（Palaeonympha opalina，又稱古眼蝶，分布於台灣和中國的中西部）歸入該亞族之下，使得該亞族的分布成為東亞-北美東部的間斷分布類型。這種東亞-北美東部分布類型雖然在其他動物群中已被發現，而在植物類群中也早在林奈時代之前就已知道，但是尚未在任何蝶類類群中被報導過。作者利用粒線體上的一個基因與四個細胞核 DNA片段，共計長度 4447 bp 的序列資料，分析102個 Euptychiina亞族下的分類群，以建立其親緣關係假說、評估其起源時間、主要分支之分化與生物地理學上的分析。Euptychiina亞族在 3100萬年前起源於南美洲。早期的Euptychiina亞族在始新世和漸新世之間、透過短暫的GAARlandia連接由北美洲擴散到南美洲。晚近之 東方區的銀蛇目蝶的間斷分布是由於南美洲一個支系朝北擴散、經由北美洲進入東亞。Palaeonympha屬的共祖與其姊妹群Megisto屬棲息在北亞和北美洲的帶狀森林中，過去曾以白令陸橋相連。而大約3100萬年前，白令陸橋的消失使得Palaeonympha屬和Megisto屬分開，且中新世晚 期（3150萬年前開始）的氣候巨變在北美洲西部造成嚴重的滅絕事件，故形成現在經典的「東亞-北美東部的間斷分布類型」。

本文章與台灣 產分類群相關者，是對銀蛇目蝶（Palaeonympha opalina）親緣關係地位之判斷，依據分子資料顯示，銀蛇目蝶應是Euptychiina亞族中某些局限分布在美洲之成員的姊妹群。此假說早在 1968年即由Miller提出，他發現Palaeonympha與Euptychiina亞族在形態上有某些相似性，這些發現促使他想要把這個東亞分布 的屬歸入原本僅有美洲產成員的Euptychiina亞族中，但是由於此奇特的間斷分布類型，最終Miller將銀蛇目蝶處理為分類地位未明的狀態。 Pen˜ a et al. (2006)的研究發現銀蛇目蝶和產於巴西東南方的Euptychiina亞族成員關係較密切，但是他並未全面地對產於北美洲和中美洲的 Euptychiina亞族成員進行採樣，故尚未發現經典的「東亞-北美東部的間斷分布類型」。本研究則進行較廣泛的採樣，進而重建並推論產於東方區的Palaeonympha的生物地理歷史，但本研究並未對每個屬中的每一個種作採樣，因此此親緣關係假說可能會受到較大屬的樣本增加而造成改變，此外，由 於只採樣銀蛇目蝶的其中一個產於台灣的亞種，因此無法確認銀蛇目蝶的每個亞種是否形成單系群。

Abstract
The diverse butterfly subtribe Euptychiina was thought to be restricted to the Americas. However, there is mounting evidence for the Oriental Palaeonympha opalina being part of Euptychiina and thus a disjunct distribution between it (in eastern Asia) and its sister taxon (in eastern North America). Such a disjunct distribution in both eastern Asia and eastern North America has never been reported for any butterfly taxon. We used 4447 bp of DNA sequences from one mitochondrial gene and four nuclear genes for 102 Euptychiina taxa to obtain a phylogenetic hypothesis of the subtribe, estimate dates of origin and diversification for major clades and perform a biogeographic analysis. Euptychiina originated 31 Ma in South America. Early Euptychiina dispersed from North to South America via the temporary connection known as GAARlandia during Eocene–Oligocene times. The current disjunct distribution of the Oriental Palaeonympha opalina is the result of a northbound dispersal of a lineage from South America into eastern Asia via North America. The common ancestor of Palaeonympha and its sister taxon Megisto inhabited the continuous forest belt across North Asia and North America, which was connected by Beringia. The closure of this connection caused the split between Palaeonympha and Megisto around 13 Ma and the severe extinctions in western North America because of the climatic changes of the Late Miocene (from 13.5 Ma onwards) resulted in the classic ‘eastern Asia and eastern North America’ disjunct distribution.

[新書]歐亞大陸與北美夜蛾總科誌 2-1與3-1卷出版

兩本書的資訊請見The Witt Catalogue的官方網頁. 其中與台灣物種相關的分類處理容後補充.

北美高山絹蝶在第四紀的氣候循環中的生物地理學研究

文獻來源：Schoville SD & Roderick GK. 2009. Alpine biogeography of Parnassian butterflies during Quaternary climate cycles in North America. Molecular Ecology. 18(1): 3471-3485. [Abstract]

更新世的冰河消長對於北美洲高山的地景，以及現居高山生態系的生物有深遠的影響。雖然物種豐度的模式偏離了島嶼生物地理學的預測，但在生物地理學上北美高山仍常被視為空中島嶼。原因之一即為受第四紀末期的地景變遷影響，造成了高山生物非平衡的群聚動態以及地理分布的變動，此可從遺傳資料中獲得證據。此研究利用粒線體DNA的COI片段以及核DNA的wingless與EF1a片段做分析、推測福布絹蝶（Parnassius phoebus）種複合群的演化歷史。作者對Parnassius smintheus與Parnassius behrii生物地理分布的變動歷史進行了多項測試，結果支持高山島嶼避難所模式，意即高山蝶類族群於冰河期縮減，並隨著間冰期的來到而擴張。雖然蝴蝶有能力於冰河期時在高山之間進行長距離的播遷，但事實上基因交流卻很少。此研究發現加州與科羅拉多州的高山棲地曾於間冰期形成連結，接著蝴蝶族群就於約兩萬年前快速擴張，進入上次冰河期後又縮減成小族群。研究譜系分枝的結果顯示P. smintheus與P. behrii的形態差異源自於更新世末期（約四萬八千年前），由於不順暢的基因交流造成分化所形成。此研究結果說明了空間的異質性與非平衡的族群動態影響了高山的生物多樣性。

Abstract
Growth of alpine glaciers during the Pleistocene had profound effects on montane landscapes in North America and the organisms now inhabiting alpine ecosystems. Biogeography of this region has often been viewed as a system of sky islands despite the fact that species richness patterns deviate from a strict island biogeographic model. One explanation is that alpine species are not in equilibrium because of late Quaternary geographic range shifts. Genetic data can provide evidence of nonequilibrium dynamics and the distributional shifts that occur during glaciation events in alpine landscapes. Using mitochondrial and nuclear sequence data, we examine the evolutionary history of butterflies in the Parnassius phoebus complex. We test explicit, alternative models of the biogeographic history of Parnassius smintheus and Parnassius behrii, including an equilibrium island model, ancestral radiation and fragmentation, an expanding alpine archipelago and an alpine archipelago refuge model. Our results support the alpine archipelago refuge model, in which alpine butterflies undergo population contraction during glacial climates followed by population expansion during interglacial phases. While butterflies can disperse between distant mountain ranges during glacial periods, gene flow is rare. We find evidence of recent connectivity between California and Colorado, population expansion events following deglaciation ∼20 000 years B.P., and small population sizes during the last glacial period. An analysis of lineage splitting suggests that morphological differences in P. smintheus and P. behrii are the result of late Pleistocene divergence (∼48 000 years B.P.) with limited gene flow. Our results demonstrate that spatially complex and nonequilibrium population dynamics influence alpine diversity patterns.