Climatic niche evolution of a widely distributed Neotropical freshwater fish clade

The role of climate in the speciation process has been documented widely in ectotherms but poorly in freshwater fishes, which represent the richest clade among vertebrates. In this study, we have evaluated the occurrence of phylogenetic niche evolution as a promoter of diversification in the herichthyines (Cichliformes: Cichlidae) clade. We used distributional and bioclimatic data, niche modelling algorithms and phylogenetic comparative methods to study patterns of climatic niche evolution in the herichthyines clade. Our results suggested that herichthyines display signals of phylogenetic niche conservatism, but also signals of niche evolution in the last 14 Myr associated with the availability of new habitats promoting ecological opportunity within the clade. We also concluded that niche conservatism is equally strong in the fundamental and realized niches, which indicates a need to evaluate the potential role of biotic interactions in the evolution of the niche in future studies.