First butterflies appeared about a hundred million years ago A study published by A.D. says they are currently spreading around the world in western North America or Central America. Nature Ecology and Evolution.
A large group of scientists Spanish participationHe reconstructed the butterfly tree of life, bringing together the DNA of more than 2,300 species from 90 countries, representing 92% of all families and genera.
Butterflies appeared at the end of the Cretaceous and the team of scientists from the Barcelona Institute of Botany and the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Pompeu Fabra University), among others, state that this is the first time they have been fed legumes.
Research shows that It would be native to the Americas, particularly western North America or Central America at this time. and the study adds that although the evidence points to a North American origin, “it’s not strong.”
about 100 million years ago, a group of moths began to fly by day instead of nightexploiting nectar-rich flowers that co-evolved with bees led to the evolution of all butterflies.
Scientists have known the exact moment since 2019, when a large-scale DNA analysis invalidated a previous hypothesis. pressure from bats fueled the evolution of butterflies after the extinction of the dinosaurs about 66 million years ago.
The source of all this data 11 rare butterfly fossilsThese animals, with their paper-thin wings and filamentous feathers, are rarely preserved in the fossil record, so analysis would not be possible without it.
According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, which co-ordinated the research, the results tell a dynamic story plagued by rapid diversification, stagnating progress, and unexpected disintegration.
Expansion all over the world
Some groups “have traveled incredibly long distances, while others seem to be stuck in one place.”continents, mountains, and rivers are motionless as they move around them,” adds the Museum.
While North America was then divided by a long seaway, today’s Mexico was connected by a long arc with the USA, Canada, and Russia.
North and South America were not yet joined by the Isthmus of Panama, but the butterflies had little difficulty crossing the strait that separated them.
Butterflies entered Asia via the Bering land bridge and spread rapidly throughout Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the Horn of Africa. They even reached India, an isolated island separated by miles of open sea.
Still “most surprising” was his arrival in AustraliaIt remained attached to Antarctica, the last unified remnant of the supercontinent Pangea.
They may have lived in Antarctica when temperatures were warmer, and may have crossed over the northern tip of the continent to Australia before the two landmasses separated.
late arrival in europe
Farther north, the butterflies remained in the far corners of Western Asia. 45 million years before migrating to Europe Akito Kawahara, lead author of the study, of the Florida Museum of Natural History (USA), explained that while the reason for this prolonged pause is unclear, its effects are still evident today.
Europe does not have many butterfly species compared to other parts of the world. and can often be found elsewhere, such as Siberia and Asia.
There are about 19,000 species of butterflies today.and to reconstruct its history, information about its modern distribution and host plants was needed, this data was in most cases not available centrally, so researchers had to build their own databases.
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