Sandokanid phylogeny based on eight molecular markers--the evolution of a southeast Asian endemic family of Laniatores (Arachnida, Opiliones).

Little is known about the familial and generic level phylogeny of Laniatores, the most diverse suborder of Opiliones. We investigated the internal phylogeny of the family Sandokanidae (formerly Oncopodidae), the putative sister group of the other families of the highly diverse infraorder Grassatores (Opiliones: Laniatores), on the basis of sequence data from eight molecular loci: 18S rRNA, 28S rRNA, 12S rRNA, 16S rRNA, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), histones H3, H4, and U2 snRNA. Exemplars of all recognized sandokanid genera, as well as a putative new genus from Thailand, were included. Data analyses were based on a direct optimization approach using parsimony, as well as maximum likelihood and Bayesian approaches on static alignments. The results obtained include the monophyly of Sandokanidae and its stability under a variety of parameter sets and methods. The internal phylogeny is relatively robust to parameter choice and demonstrates the monophyly of nearly all described genera, corroborating previous morphological observations. However, conflict among data sets exists with respect to the monophyly of the largest genus Gnomulus. Morphological character evolution, particularly of characters used to define genera, such as tarsal count and male genitalia, is reexamined and the performance of the eight molecular markers in phylogenetic estimation is evaluated.