identifier	taxonID	type	CVterm	format	language	title	description	additionalInformationURL	UsageTerms	rights	Owner	contributor	creator	bibliographicCitation
03DD87E6D602FF8AFF1AFA4FD8E31418.text	03DD87E6D602FF8AFF1AFA4FD8E31418.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Antechinus	<html xmlns:mods="http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3">
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            <p> Antechinus (order  Dasyuromorphia ) is a genus of small, carnivorous marsupials endemic to Australia, occurring in all states and mainland territories (Van Dyck &amp; Strahan, 2008). They are abundant throughout the species-rich mesic zone of Australia and thus are believed to play an important ecological role as a microcarnivore and in pollen transfer (Carthew &amp; Goldingay, 1997; Goldingay, 2000; Dickman, 2014). The genus has become well-known as one of a few mammal genera that undertake semelparous mating, where all males die at the close of a frenetic 1–3 week synchronized annual breeding period (Woolley, 1966). Because of this,  Antechinus is sometimes used as a model organism in reproductive biology (Naylor et al., 2008) and is of interest in ageing research (e.g. Sergiev et al., 2015; Goldsmith, 2016). </p>
            <p> Dasyuromorphia is the principal clade of Australasian carnivorous marsupials, which include four families:  Malleodectidae , known only from the fossil record, the recently extinct  Thylacinidae ,  Myrmecobiidae (the monotypic numbat,  Myrmecobius fasciatus Waterhouse, 1836 ) and the species-rich  Dasyuridae (~75 extant species) (Jackson &amp; Groves, 2015; Archer et al., 2016).  Dasyuridae contains two subfamilies: the small-sized  Sminthopsinae and the larger  Dasyurinae . Within  Dasyurinae there are two tribes:  Dasyurini , which contains the largest extant  Dasyuromorphia species, the quolls (genus  Dasyurus , 0.3–7 kg), the Tasmanian devil (  Sarcophilus harrisii (Boitard, 1841) , 6–14 kg) and a number of smaller genera, and the  Phascogalini (Van Dyck et al., 2013; Jackson &amp; Groves, 2015). Early work, largely pre-dating modern genetic techniques, recognized  Antechinus in New Guinea, but genetic studies have since consistently resolved all New Guinean species in the genus  Murexia (Baverstock et al., 1982; Kirsch et al., 1990; Krajewski et al., 1994, 1996, 2000, 2007; Retief et al., 1995; Armstrong et al., 1998; Mitchell et al., 2014; Westerman et al., 2015).  Murexia ,  Antechinus and the arboreal Australian genus  Phascogale constitute the tribe  Phascogalini . Relationships between the three  Phascogalini genera are uncertain. Molecular studies have generally resolved  Antechinus as sister to  Murexia (e.g. Krajewski et al., 2007; Mitchell et al., 2014). However, a recent molecular study (Westerman et al., 2015) resolved  Murexia and  Phascogale as sister genera, a result in line with Van Dyck’s (2002) morphological analysis. </p>
            <p>*Corresponding author. E-mail: thomas.y.mutton@gmail.com</p>
            <p> While higher-level systematic relationships in dasyurids are largely resolved (Mitchell et al., 2014; Westerman et al., 2015), species-level relationships and taxonomy of a number of genera remain uncertain (e.g. Blacket et al., 2006; Westerman et al., 2008, 2016). A number of genetic studies have aimed to resolve the systematic position of all  Antechinus species (Baverstock et al., 1982; Krajewski et al., 1994, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2007; Retief et al., 1995; Armstrong et al., 1998). However, since 2012 five additional species of  Antechinus have been named on the combined basis of morphology (pelage, external and craniodentary features), ecology, geographic distribution and genetic differences (Baker et al., 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015). Unfortunately, the genetic analysis that was included in these taxonomic studies could only be based on partial sequence data for two genes (Baker et al., 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015). While clearly supporting the uniqueness of each new taxon, these genetic reconstructions were not powerful enough to fully resolve their relative systematic position with congeners. For example, these studies were the first molecular research to include  A. adustus Thomas, 1923 and  A. subtropicus Van Dyck &amp; Crowther, 2000 , whose systematic positions were rendered uncertain by the new discoveries. Therefore, the relative placements of seven of the 15  Antechinus species and a number of subspecies have not been tested in a comprehensive molecular study. The current research aims to resolve these knowledge gaps by sequencing for the first time all 15  Antechinus species and their subspecies with a comprehensive multi-gene dataset of two mitochondrial and four nuclear genes. The present analysis also allows the timescale of  Antechinus evolution to be estimated for all species for the first time and possible biogeographic drivers of their diversification to be explored. Furthermore, while Mitchell et al. (2014) performed ancestral habitat reconstruction for marsupials, they were able to include only eight  Antechinus species. We have, therefore, reconstructed the ancestral habitat of all 15 described species of  Antechinus . Accurate taxonomic and systematic delineation underpins effective conservation management (Mace, 2004). Three  Antechinus species and one subspecies have been identified as at risk of extinction under Australian law within the last three years. This includes two of the recently discovered species. The work presented here will therefore be of importance when designing future conservation actions and priorities. </p>
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	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03DD87E6D602FF8AFF1AFA4FD8E31418	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Plazi	Mutton, Thomas Y;Phillips, Matthew J;Fuller, Susan J;Bryant, Litticia M;Baker, Andrew M	Mutton, Thomas Y, Phillips, Matthew J, Fuller, Susan J, Bryant, Litticia M, Baker, Andrew M (2019): Systematics, biogeography and ancestral state of the Australian marsupial genus Antechinus (Dasyuromorphia: Dasyuridae). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 186 (2): 553-568, DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zly062, URL: https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/article/186/2/553/5480676
