Molecular Biology and Evolution, Vol 11, 357-364, Copyright © 1994 by Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
D Graur and DG Higgins
The transition in the cetaceans from terrestrial life to a fully aquatic
existence is one of the most enduring evolutionary mysteries. Resolving the
phylogenetic relationships between Cetacea and the other orders of
eutherian mammals may provide us with important clues to the origin of
whales and may help us date the evolutionary transition to aquatic life.
Previous paleontological and molecular evidence has indicated that
cetaceans and artiodactyls constitute a natural clade within subclass
Eutheria. Our present phylogenetic analyses of protein and mitochondrial
DNA sequence data indicate that cetaceans are not only intimately related
to the artiodactyls; they are in fact deeply nested within the artiodactyl
phylogenetic tree; i.e., they are more closely related to the members of
one suborder of artiodactyls, the Ruminantia, than either ruminants or
cetaceans are to members of the other two artiodactyl suborders: Suiformes
and Tylopoda. On the basis of the rate of evolution of mitochondrial DNA
sequences and using paleontological reference dates for calibration, we
estimate that the whale lineage has branched off a protoruminant lineage
< 50 Mya. By implication, the cetacean transition to aquatic life is
inferred to be a relatively recent evolutionary event.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Molecular evidence for the inclusion of cetaceans within the order Artiodactyla
Department of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Israel.
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