Molecular phylogeny and siphonal diversity of the superfamily Tellinoidea (Mollusca, Bivalvia)

• Grant number: 22/13918-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: February 28, 2023
• End date: August 27, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Morphology of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Flávio Dias Passos
• Grantee: Alan Rodrigo Batistão
• Supervisor: Gonzalo Giribet
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Harvard University, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 21/00994-2 - Tellinoidea siphons (Mollusca: Bivalvia): an anatomical-evolutionary approach, BP.MS

Abstract

The bivalve siphons comprise tubular organs derived from the fusion and extension of the posterior mantle margins. The emergence of these organs is considered a key feature in the evolutionary radiation of bivalves, as they allow infaunal animals to have contact with the water column above the substrate while remaining buried. The importance of siphons strongly indicates the potential usefulness of these organs as a source of data for evolutionary investigations. Among siphoned infaunal bivalves, the superfamily Tellinoidea stands out for its siphonal, taxonomic, and ecological diversity. In this context, the tellinoideans are a suitable evolutionary model for siphonal studies. The main project, developed in Brazil, investigates the siphonal diversity of tellinoideans and plans to use comparative phylogenetic methods to answer hypotheses of key innovations, homologies, and evolutionary convergence. However, investigations about the evolution of Tellinoidea siphons are currently hampered by the lack of a more robust phylogenetic background. Therefore, this Research Internships Abroad project proposes to: (1) sequence ca. 1,000 markers using UCEs (ultra-conserved elements) from about 60 specimens comprising 21 Brazilian species of Tellinoidea; (2) examine the siphonal morphology of 39 additional species deposited in the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University. Consequently, this proposal, combined with the main project, will provide the necessary phylogenetic framework to evaluate the morphological evolution of the siphons and the diversification of tellinoidean bivalves; and (3) provide a robust phylogenetic background that will be used to investigate the morphological evolution of siphonal traits. (AU)