Unioverse: a phylogenomic resource for reconstructing the evolution of freshwater mussels (Bivalvia, Unionoida)

Freshwater mussels (order Unionoida) are a diverse radiation of parasitic bivalves that require temporary larval encystment on vertebrate hosts to complete metamorphosis to their free-living phase. The freshwater mussel-fish symbiosis represents a useful relationship for understanding eco-evolutionary dynamics in freshwater ecosystems but the practicality of this promising model system is undermined by the absence of a stable freshwater mussel phylogeny. Inadequate character sampling is the primary analytical impediment obfuscating a coherent phylogeny of freshwater mussels, specifically the lack of nuclear molecular markers appropriate for reconstructing supraspecific relationships and testing macroevolutionary hypotheses. The objective of this study is to develop a phylogenomic resource, specifically an anchored hybrid enrichment probe set, capable of capturing hundreds of molecular markers from taxa distributed across the entirety of freshwater mussel biodiversity. Our freshwater mus...