Loriini

Smith, Brian Tilston, Thom, Gregory & Joseph, Leo, 2024, Revised Evolutionary And Taxonomic Synthesis For Parrots (Order: Psittaciformes) Guided By Phylogenomic Analysis, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2024 (468), pp. 1-87 : 66-69

Loriini

The nectarivorous lories and lorikeets ( Loriini ) are a diverse group that radiated across Indonesia, the Philippines, Australia, and the South Pacific, having their highest diversity on New Guinea. The clade exhibits a wide range of within Loriini occurred at 14.2 Mya (6.0–19.5) body sizes and plumage colors (Merwin et al., and 12.5 Mya (4.8–17.5; fig. 14). Within clade 2, 2020). Relationships among genera are consis- the topology forms a ladder with consecutive tent across studies ( Schweizer et al., 2015; Smith divergences of Charminetta , Hypocharmosyna , et al., 2020) and the phylogenomic tree presented and Charmosynopsis . The remaining relationhere ( Smith et al., 2023). The poorer-quality ships were sister genera, Synorhacma and Charsamples in the clade containing Eos , Saudareos , mosyna, and Vini and Charmosynoides , and Trichoglossus , which had the highest fre- respectively (fig. 14). Maximum likelihood diverquency of nodes in the Loriini with <95% UFBS gence dates among genera within clade 2 ranged support, prevented verifying its placement in the from 6.1 to 10.4 Mya (fig. 14). Within clade 3, species tree. In our discussion below of species- Neopsittacus then Lorius were sister to the level relationships, we exclude reference to the remaining members of the group. The phylogespecies tree from Smith et al. (2023) given the netic placement of Neopsittacus as sister to the lower quality of sequence data, thus poorly diverse clade containing Lorius , Saudareos , Eos , resolved gene trees, for the lorikeets. We attri- Trichoglossus , Glossopsitta , Pseudeos, Chalcopbute the lower information content of lorikeet sitta, Psitteuteles , and Glossoptilus was stable sequence data relative to the other parrots across phylogenies. Parvipsitta and Psitteuteles , because the lorikeets were the first group for and Pseudeos and Chalcopsitta were both sister which we derived data from a commercial pairs. The remaining members of clade 3 sequencing facility. Nonetheless, the concate- included Glossoptilus , which was sister to a group nated phylogenomic tree provided a robust phy- containing Glossopsitta , Eos , Trichoglossus , and logenetic hypothesis that reaffirmed previous Saudareos . The high generic diversity of clade 3 works and added nearly all described taxa. was estimated to have originated within a range Using the phylogenomic tree of the Loriini , of 5 to 9.7 Mya based on maximum likelihood Joseph et al. (2020) reclassified generic limits divergence dates (fig. 14).

within the clade to align with phylogenetic history. This revision resulted in the splitting of sev- Oreopsittacus eral nonmonophyletic genera ( Trichoglossus ; Oreopsittacus is monotypic with geographic Charmosyna ; Psitteuteles ). There are three main variation across the New Guinea highlands. Oreclades in the Loriini : (1) the monotypic and opsittacus arfaki is a small green lorikeet, with a small-bodied Oreopsittacus ; (2) includes diminu- long tail, and a distinct facial pattern of purple tive to small lorikeets with long tails: Charmo- cheek patches and a broken “spotted” white syna, Vini , Charminetta , Hypocharmosyna , malar stripe. As sister to all other lorikeets, it is Charmosynopsis , Synorhacma , and Charmosynoi- on a long branch stemming from the basal diverdes; and (3) species with a broad range in body gence of the radiation dating to 14.2 Mya (6–19.5; size (small to large) and tails varying from short fig. 14). Despite the significance of its evolution- and square to long and attenuated: Neopsittacus , ary position in the lorikeet phylogeny, it is Glossopsitta , Lorius , Parvipsitta , Psitteuteles , unclear how Oreopsittacus may inform the evolu- Pseudeos , Chalcopsitta , Glossoptilus , Eos , Tricho- tion of traits in the clade. Body size and plumage glossus, and Saudareos . Clade 1 was sister to evolution are labile in lorikeets (Merwin et al., clades 2 and 3. The origin of the deepest clades 2020). From a biogeographic perspective Oreop- FIGURE 14. Time-calibrated topology of Loriinae . Support values come from the maximum likelihood tree. Support values come from the maximum likelihood tree. Nodes have ultrafast bootstrap values of ≥95% otherwise noted. Gray bars represent divergence time ranges were estimated from 100 bootstrap trees. * denotes an unsupported node where the topology of the presented time-calibrated phylogeny differs from that of the maximum likelihood tree.

sittacus helps reinforce the hypothesis that lorikeets originated in New Guinea.