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Phylogenomics And A Posteriori Data Partitioning Resolve The Cretaceous Angiosperm Radiation Malpighiales, Zhenxiang Xi, Brad Ruhfel, Hanno Schaefer, André Amorim, M. Sugumaran, Kenneth Wurdack, Peter Endress, Merran Matthews, Peter Stevens, Sarah Mathews, Charles Davis

Brad R. Ruhfel

The angiosperm order Malpighiales includes ∼16,000 species and constitutes up to 40% of the understory tree diversity in tropical rain forests. Despite remarkable progress in angiosperm systematics during the last 20 y, relationships within Malpighiales remain poorly resolved, possibly owing to its rapid rise during the mid-Cretaceous. Using phylogenomic approaches, including analyses of 82 plastid genes from 58 species, we identified 12 additional clades in Malpighiales and substantially increased resolution along the backbone. This greatly improved phylogeny revealed a dynamic history of shifts in net diversification rates across Malpighiales, with bursts of diversification noted in the Barbados cherries (Malpighiaceae), cocas …