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North American cave-obligate millipedes remain poorly understood, with limited resolution of species boundaries and evolutionary relationships despite their ecological and conservation importance. Here, we present the first comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study of the genus Scoterpes (Chordeumatida: Trichopetalidae), a taxonomically challenging group of troglobionts distributed across the southern Interior Low Plateau and Appalachians karst regions in the eastern United States.
To assess genetic diversity and species limits, we compiled an extensive dataset consisting of over 400 specimens from more than 120 cave sites, drawing from existing collections from the Cave Bio Lab at UAH and new collections targeting undersampled regions. We are generating DNA sequence data from two mitochondrial loci (16S rRNA and COI) and two nuclear genes (28S rRNA and histone H3) to infer phylogenetic relationships and evaluate species delimitation. Preliminary analyses of the mitochondrial COI locus reveal substantial genetic structuring across geographic regions, suggesting the presence of previously unrecognized cryptic diversity within Scoterpes.
Ongoing multilocus analyses will further refine phylogenetic relationships and provide a robust framework for delimiting species. These results will improve our understanding of diversification and evolutionary history in subterranean systems and provide critical baseline data for conservation and land management. By clarifying species boundaries and distributions, this study contributes to more effective protection of cave-restricted biodiversity and highlights the extent of undocumented diversity in North American karst ecosystems.
Coral I. Quering*, Evin T. Carter, Katherine E. Dooley, Annette Summers Engel, Kirk S. Zigler, Matthew Niemillerr