History of the genus Myotis (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Brazil: phylogeny, distribution, and cytogenetics

Myotis is the largest genus of the Vespertilionidae family. It presents a cosmopolitan geographical distribution and is considered an example of adaptive radiation, however, with only nine species recorded for Brazil. This study synthesized aspects of the geographic distribution by map punctuating the main records for each species, karyotype, and phylogeny in contribution to the understanding of the taxonomic complex of the genus Myotis in Brazil. A search in bibliographic databases (e.g., Web of Science and SciElo) was carried out using keywords. The phylogeny study was based on the sequencing of a specimen of Myotis ruber collected in a fragment of the Altantic Forest of Minas Gerais; this specimen was deposited at the Newton Baião de Azevedo Museum of Zoology. The genus showed to be widely distributed in the Brazilian territory, with Myotis nigricans being the most widespread. In addition, high karyotypic conservatism was observed in all species of the genus. The phylogenetic analyses using the mt-Cytb gene corroborated the monophyletic aspect of the genus and the Myotis ruber species