大步甲的分子系统与进化模式

大步甲主要分布于北半球,全世界大约有1000余种。因大步甲后翅退化,不能飞行,其移动能力和扩散范围都受到很大程度的限制,因此,容易产生地理隔离和遗传分化,从而成为研究物种分化和生物多样化的好材料。近年来,通过对大步甲分子系统的详细研究,不仅很大程度上解明了大步甲各分类群间的系统发育关系,而且对大步甲的系统演化过程和形态进化模式也有了较深的理解,获得了很多重要的见解。在此做一个简单的综述。

Molecular phylogeny and evolutionary mode of carabid ground beetles(Carabidae, Coleoptera)

Carabid ground beetles are distributed mainly in the Northern hemisphere and more than 1 000 species are known in the world.Most of these beetles are hindwingless and cannot fly,which considerably restricts their migration ability and dispersal range,so that they are more easily isolated into geographically or genetically different populations compared with winged insects.Therefore,carabid ground beetles are thought to be good materials to study evolution and diversity of organisms.In recent years,molecular phylogenetic studies have been performed extensively and in detail on the various groups of carabid ground beetles.These studies have not only elucidated the phylogenetic relationships of the beetles,but also gave important information about understanding of the evolutionary process and pattern of carabid beetles.Here I give a brief review of these studies.