Ultraconserved elements resolve the phylogeny and corroborate patterns of molecular rate variation in herons (Aves: Ardeidae)

Thoroughly sampled and well-supported phylogenetic trees are essential to taxonomy and to guide studies of evolution and ecology. Despite extensive prior inquiry, a comprehensive tree of heron relationships (Aves: Ardeidae) has not yet been published. As a result, the classification of this family remains unstable, and their evolutionary history remains poorly studied. Here, we sample genome-wide ultraconserved elements (UCEs) and mitochondrial DNA sequences (mtDNA) of >90% of extant species to estimate heron phylogeny using a combination of maximum likelihood (ML), coalescent, and Bayesian inference (BI) methods. The UCE and mtDNA trees are mostly concordant with one another, providing a topology that resolves relationships among the five heron subfamilies and indicates that the genera Gorsachius, Botaurus, Ardea, and Ixobrychus are not monophyletic. We also present the first genetic data from the Forest Bittern Zonerodius heliosylus, an enigmatic species of New Guinea; our results ..., ,