Phylogenetic history of sifakas (Propithecus : Lemuriformes) derived from mtDNA sequences

The sifakas (Propithecus) include three species containing up to 10 describ ed subspecies, whose evolutionary relationships remain contentious. In part icular, it is unclear whether P. verreauxi deckeni and P.v. coronatus popul ations are differentiated at the subspecific level. Furthermore, the taxono mic status of the recently discovered P. tattersalli and its phylogenetic p osition also require further examination. About 2,400 bp of mitochondrial D NA sequence data from part of the COIII gene, together with complete genes for ND3, ND4L, ND4, and five tRNAs, were used to clarify relationships amon g Propithecus species and subspecies. All analyses group Avahi as the siste r group to all sifakas. P. diadema is placed as a sister group to all other Propithecus. Among the remaining sifakas, one subclade is formed by P.v. c oquereli and P. tattersalli, while P.v. verreauxi, P.u. deckeni, and P.v. c oronatus form the second subclade. All analyses fail to resolve P.u. corona tus and P.v, deckeni into separate monophyletic lineages. Based on pairwise distance comparisons and tree topology, we conclude that P. tattersalli do es not represent a distinct species and that P.u. decheni and P. v. coronat us do not deserve subspecific rank. On the other hand, our analyses indicat e that P.v. coquereli may well represent a separate species. Am. J. Primato l. 53:1-17, 2001. (C) 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.