Molecular systematics of the armored neotropical catfish subfamily Neoplecostominae (Siluriformes: Loricariidae)

Morphological and molecular studies in the family Loricariidae have revealed that the relationships among its members are not yet well resolved, and the present study was conducted with the main objective of improving our knowledge about this highly diversified group of catfishes. Maximum parsimony and Bayesian analysis were conducted on a matrix of 53 terminal taxa and 4676 characters with partial sequences of the genes COI, CytB, 16S rRNA, 12S rRNA and F-reticulon 4. As outgroups, samples of the species Hemipsilichthys gobio and H. papillatus (subfamily Delturinae), Rineloricaria jaraguensis (subfamily Loricariinae), Hypostomus nigromaculatus (subfamily Hypostominae), Hypoptopoma inexpectatum (subfamily Hypoptopomatinae), and Corumbataia cuestae (subfamily Otothyrinae) were used. The results showed that the subfamily Neoplecostominae is monophyletic, including Pseudotocinclus, and three clades were recognized. The first one is composed of Pareiorhina rudolphi, P. cf. rudolphi and Pseudotocinclus. The second is composed of Isbrueckerichthys, Pareiorhaphis, Kronichthys and Neoplecostomus ribeirensis. The third is composed of the remaining species of the genera Neoplecostomus, except N. ribeirensis, Pareiorhina carrancas, P. cf. carrancas, Pareiorhina sp. 1 (possible new species) and an undescribed taxon referred to in this paper as new genus and species 2. In our analyses, Pareiorhina and Neoplecostomus are paraphyletic taxa.