Data from: Evolution of the assassin’s arms: insights from a phylogeny of combined transcriptomic and ribosomal DNA data (Heteroptera: Reduvioidea)

Assassin bugs (Reduvioidea) are one of the most diverse (>7,000 spp.) lineages of predatory animals and have evolved an astounding diversity of raptorial leg modifications for handling prey. The evolution of these modifications is not well understood due to the lack of a robust phylogeny, especially at deeper nodes. We here utilize refined data from transcriptomes (370 loci) to stabilize the backbone phylogeny of Reduvioidea, revealing the position of major clades (e.g., the Chagas disease vectors Triatominae). Analyses combining transcriptomic and Sanger-sequencing datasets result in the first well-resolved phylogeny of Reduvioidea. Despite amounts of missing data, the transcriptomic loci resolve deeper nodes while the targeted ribosomal genes anchor taxa at shallower nodes, both with high support. This phylogeny reveals patterns of raptorial leg evolution across major leg types. Hairy attachment structures (fossula spongiosa), present in the ancestor of Reduvioidea, were lost multiple times within the clade. In contrast to prior hypotheses, this loss is not directly correlated with the evolution of alternative raptorial leg types. Our results suggest that prey type, predatory behavior, salivary toxicity, and morphological adaptations pose intricate and interrelated factors influencing the evolution of this diverse group of predators.猎蝽总科（Reduvioidea）是物种多样性最高的捕食性动物支系之一，已知物种超过7000种，其演化出了极为多样的捕捉足特化结构以适配猎物捕食。由于缺乏稳健的系统发育框架，尤其是深层节点的系统发育关系尚未明确，这类特化结构的演化历程至今尚未得到充分解析。本研究利用转录组（transcriptome）优化得到的370个基因座数据，构建了猎蝽总科的基部系统发育树，明确了各大支系的系统位置——例如恰加斯病传播媒介锥蝽亚科（Triatominae）。结合转录组与桑格测序（Sanger-sequencing）数据集的分析，首次得到了分辨率优异的猎蝽总科系统发育树。尽管存在大量缺失数据，转录组基因座可有效解析深层系统发育节点，而靶向核糖体基因则能在浅表层节点为类群提供锚定支撑，二者均获得了较高的统计支持。该系统发育树揭示了不同类型捕捉足的演化格局：猎蝽总科祖先类群所具有的带毛附着结构——海绵状爪垫（fossula spongiosa），在该支系内曾多次独立丢失。与此前的学术假说相悖，这类结构的丢失与替代型捕捉足类型的演化并无直接关联。本研究结果表明，猎物类型、捕食行为、唾液毒性以及形态适应性，共同构成了影响这一多样捕食性类群演化的复杂且相互关联的多重驱动因素。