Premier Presentation: Genes and genomes yield new insights into the phylogeny and evolution of beetles (order Coleoptera)

The order Coleoptera (beetles) contains at least 389,000 described living species, more than any other order of animals. The causes of this apparent “inordinate fondness” (Hutchinson 1959) are controversial, but interactions with plants are widely considered to have played an important role. In this talk I will present higher-level phylogenies for the order Coleoptera and some of its largest and most successful lineages, based on analyses of genomes, transcriptomes, traditional molecular data, and data obtained via new methods for partial genome capture. I will then discuss timing and patterns of diversification in beetles, with special reference to the role of plants in beetle diversification. Finally, I will discuss the genomic basis and evolution of phytophagy (plant-feeding) in beetles, using the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis; ALB) as a model. The ALB genome encodes an arsenal of genes, some obtained from microbes via lateral gene transfer, that facilitate phytophagy and broad polyphagy. Together, these studies illustrate how systematics and comparative genomics are converging by way of new data, methods and broadly collaborative research efforts to reveal the evolutionary history and genomic basis of insect diversity.