Data from: Dispersal largely explains the Gondwanan distribution of the ancient tropical clusioid plant clade

PREMISE OF THE STUDY: The clusioid clade (Malpighiales) has an ancient
fossil record (∼90 Ma) and extant representatives exhibit a pantropical
distribution represented on all former Gondwanan landmasses (Africa,
Australia, India, Madagascar, and South America) except Antarctica.
Several biogeographers have hypothesized that the clusioid distribution is
an example of Gondwanan vicariance. Our aim is to test the hypothesis that
the modern distribution of the clusioid clade is largely explained by
Gondwanan fragmentation. METHODS: Using a four gene, 207-taxon data set we
simultaneously estimated the phylogeny and divergence times of the
clusioid clade using a Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo approach.
Ancestral Area Reconstructions (AARs) were then conducted on a
distribution of 1000 trees and summarized on a reduced phylogeny. KEY
RESULTS: Divergence time estimates and AARs revealed only two or four
cladogenic events that are potentially consistent with Gondwanan
vicariance, depending on the placement of the ancient fossil Paleoclusia.
In contrast, dispersal occurred on > 25% of the branches,
indicating the current distribution of the clade likely reflects extensive
recent dispersal during the Cenozoic (< 65 Ma), most of which
occurred after the beginning of the Eocene (∼56 Ma). CONCLUSIONS: These
results support growing evidence that suggests many traditionally
recognized angiosperm clades (families and genera) are too young for their
distributions to have been influenced strictly by Gondwanan fragmentation.
Instead, it appears that corridors of dispersal may be the best
explanation for numerous angiosperm clades with Gondwanan distributions.