Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites
Though mostly soil dwelling, oribatid mites are found in all kind of habitats, with several species exclusively living on trees. Using previously published DNA sequences and eco-morphological data available from the literature, we inferred the number of transitions between soil dwelling to a truly a...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Diversity |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/12/6/255 |
| _version_ | 1797564448317112320 |
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| author | Sylvia Schäffer Stephan Koblmüller Günther Krisper |
| author_facet | Sylvia Schäffer Stephan Koblmüller Günther Krisper |
| author_sort | Sylvia Schäffer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Though mostly soil dwelling, oribatid mites are found in all kind of habitats, with several species exclusively living on trees. Using previously published DNA sequences and eco-morphological data available from the literature, we inferred the number of transitions between soil dwelling to a truly arboreal lifestyle in oribatid mites and the shape evolution of a particular morphological structure of a sense organ (bothridial seta (= sensillus) of a trichobothrium), the shape of which was previously reported to be associated with an arboreal lifestyle. Our data suggest that a truly arboreal lifestyle evolved several times independently in oribatid mites, but much less often than previously proposed in the past. Even though all truly arboreal species indeed seem to possess a capitate sensillus, this character is not exclusive for arboreal taxa. Nonetheless, since all truly arboreal species do have a capitate sensillus, this might be considered an important (pre-)adaptation to a life on trees. We further provide guidelines on how the term “arboreal” should be applied in future mite research and emphasize the importance of exact microhabitat characterization, as this will greatly facilitate comparisons across studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:57:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a0f6927cb10849bdad3e0b9290e78b7e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1424-2818 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:57:29Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Diversity |
| spelling | doaj.art-a0f6927cb10849bdad3e0b9290e78b7e2023-11-20T04:38:55ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182020-06-0112625510.3390/d12060255Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid MitesSylvia Schäffer0Stephan Koblmüller1Günther Krisper2Institute of Biology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, AustriaInstitute of Biology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, AustriaInstitute of Biology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, AustriaThough mostly soil dwelling, oribatid mites are found in all kind of habitats, with several species exclusively living on trees. Using previously published DNA sequences and eco-morphological data available from the literature, we inferred the number of transitions between soil dwelling to a truly arboreal lifestyle in oribatid mites and the shape evolution of a particular morphological structure of a sense organ (bothridial seta (= sensillus) of a trichobothrium), the shape of which was previously reported to be associated with an arboreal lifestyle. Our data suggest that a truly arboreal lifestyle evolved several times independently in oribatid mites, but much less often than previously proposed in the past. Even though all truly arboreal species indeed seem to possess a capitate sensillus, this character is not exclusive for arboreal taxa. Nonetheless, since all truly arboreal species do have a capitate sensillus, this might be considered an important (pre-)adaptation to a life on trees. We further provide guidelines on how the term “arboreal” should be applied in future mite research and emphasize the importance of exact microhabitat characterization, as this will greatly facilitate comparisons across studies.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/12/6/255lifestyletree related microhabitats18S rRNAphylogenyancestral state reconstructionsensillus |
| spellingShingle | Sylvia Schäffer Stephan Koblmüller Günther Krisper Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites Diversity lifestyle tree related microhabitats 18S rRNA phylogeny ancestral state reconstruction sensillus |
| title | Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites |
| title_full | Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites |
| title_fullStr | Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites |
| title_full_unstemmed | Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites |
| title_short | Revisiting the Evolution of Arboreal Life in Oribatid Mites |
| title_sort | revisiting the evolution of arboreal life in oribatid mites |
| topic | lifestyle tree related microhabitats 18S rRNA phylogeny ancestral state reconstruction sensillus |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/12/6/255 |
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