Vol. 46 No. 1, 2007

A Phylogenetic Supertree of the Hammerhead Sharks (Carcharhiniformes: Sphyrnidae)

Mauro José Cavalcanti

Departamento de Vertebrados, Museu Nacional/UFRJ, Quinta da Boa Vista, São Cristóvão, 20940-040, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

Mauro José Cavalcanti (2007) In this study, 5 hammerhead shark phylogenies (based on morphological, isozyme, and mtDNA sequence data) were combined to generate a complete, well-resolved composite phylogeny for the Sphyrnidae using matrix representation with parsimony. The resulting supertree contains all 8 known sphyrnid species and represents the best estimate of the combined relationships presented in the original 5 source trees. This supertree will provide a useful framework for further phylogenetic comparative studies of sphyrnid evolution, ecology, and biogeography.

Key words: Composite trees, Matrix representation with parsimony, Phylogeny, Sphyrna, Eusphyra.

*Correspondence: E-mail:maurobio@acd.ufrj.br