KOHN, A.J.; DUDA, T.F. Jr.; Univ. of Washington, Seattle; Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor: Hyperdiverse genera: Macroevolutionary and Macroecological Perspectives on Tropical Marine Superclades

Several mainly tropical genera of marine animals are hyperdiverse, containing more than 200 extant species. Fishes, corals, and crustaceans are represented, but prosobranch gastropod genera account for the majority. Most of these �superclades� originated and radiated during the Cenozoic Period, and they now contribute importantly to the high biodiversity of tropical coral reef-associated habitats. They also share several macroevolutionary and macroecological attributes: Their geologic youth and high modern diversity indicate high speciation rates. In addition to global species richness, many species of these genera often co-occur in the same habitats. Conus, with well over 500 extant species globally, is pre-eminent among these taxa as the most diverse genus of marine animals, and it may serve to model common evolutionary processes in hyperdiverse genera. We explore the molecular, anatomical, ecological, and developmental attributes of this genus as well as relevant extrinsic environmental factors that might have fostered its rapid diversification during Cenozoic earth history. We also report on how species-level phylogenetic hypotheses, available only recently from gene sequence data, are affecting our understanding of this evolutionary history, of modern ecological interactions, and of past and present geographic distribution patterns.