Basal phylogeny of the tyrannoidea based on comparisons of cytochrome b and exons of nuclear c-myc and RAG-1 genes

The outlines of the phylogenetic relationships within the New World suboscine clade Tyrannoidea were investigated on the basis of nucleotide sequence data from two nuclear genes (c-myc and RAG-1) and one mitochondrial gene (cytochrome b), totaling over 2,400 bp. Representatives of the major tyrannoid lineages were sequenced, including Pachyramphus, Schiffornis, Tityra, and Oxyruncus. The data set with the three genes combined was analyzed under both the parsimony and maximum-likelihood criteria and under different character weighting schemes. The analyses resulted in similar topologies that differed only in poorly supported nodes. The three manakins (Pipra, Manacus, and Chiroxiphia) included in this study were found to be monophyletic, whereas Schiffornis - sometimes also considered to be a manakin - did not group with the manakins, but occurred with Pachyramphus and Tityra in the clade Tityrinae. The two clades Pipromorphinae and Tyranninae are also strongly supported in this analysis and appear as sister groups, thus supporting the monophyly of the tyrant flycatcher assemblage. Phytotoma was placed with the only cotingid species included in this analysis, whereas the position of Oxyruncus was unresolved.