Data from: Molecular phylogeny and revised classification of the haplotilapiine cichlid fishes formerly referred to as “Tilapia”

African cichlids formerly referred to as ”Tilapia” represent a
paraphyletic species assemblage belonging to the so called haplotilapiine
lineage which gave rise to the spectacular East African cichlid radiations
(EARs) as well as to globally important aquaculture species. We present a
comprehensive molecular phylogeny of representative haplotilapiine
cichlids, combining in one data set four mitochondrial and five nuclear
loci for 76 species, and compare it with phylogenetic information of a
second data set of 378 mitochondrial ND2 haplotypes representing almost
all important “Tilapia” or Tilapia-related lineages as well as most EAR
lineages. The monophyly of haplotilapiines is supported, as is the nested
sister group relationship of Etia and mouthbrooding tilapiines with the
remaining haplotilapiines. The latter are consistently placed in eight
monophyletic clades over all datasets and analyses, but several
dichotomous phylogenetic relationships appear compromised by cytonuclear
discordant phylogenetic signal. Based on these results as well as on
extensive morphological evidence we propose a novel generic and
suprageneric classification including a (re-)diagnosis of 20
haplotilapiine cichlid genera and nine tribes. New tribes are provided for
the former subgenera Coptodon Gervais, 1853, HeterotilapiaRegan, 1920 and
PelmatolapiaThys van den Audenaerde, 1969, in addition for “Tilapia” joka,
Tilapia sensu stricto and Chilochromis, Etia, Steatocranus sensu stricto,
the mouthbrooding tilapiines and for a clade of West African tilapiines.