AN INTERPLAY BETWEEN FOREST AND NON-FOREST SOUTH-AMERICAN AVIFAUNAS SUGGESTED BY A PHYLOGENY OF LEPIDOCOLAPTES WOODCREEPERS (DENDROCOLAPTINAE)

Very few South American avian superspecies or species groups are compo sed of both forest and non-forest mx-rr, The genus Lepidocolaptes comp rises 8-9 species of woodcreepers. most of which are forest birds, but two species, L. angustirostris and L, souleyetii, inhabit open vegeta rians. Therefore, this genus should play an important role in the disc ussion about the relationships between forest and non-forest South Ame rican avifaunas. Nucleotide sequences from two mitochondrial genes, cy tochrome b and ND2, suggest that: (i) L, fuscus should be removed from the genus since its association with other members of this genus is p oorly supported. This view has been pointed out also by morphological and behavioural data; (ii) the phylogenetic position of the open-veget ation species within the Lepidocolaptes radiation indicate that the sp lit between forest and non-forest elements within this genus took plac e as recently as two million years ago. This result suggests that the evolutionary relationships between forest and non-forest biotas in Sou th America may have been more dynamic than previously thought.