On the Phylogenetic Position of the Uraeotyphlidae (Amphibia: Gymnophiona)

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Abstract
The taxonomic history of the monogeneric caecilian family Uraeotyphlidae and hypotheses concerning its phylogenetic position are briefly reviewed. Previous phylogenetic analyses identified Uraeotyphlidae as sister to a "higher" caecilian clade that includes the families Caeciliaidae, Scolecomorphidae, and Typhlonectidae. However, two distinctive derived features of the cardiovascular system are characteristic of Uraeotyphlidae and Ichthyophiidae and provide support for the alternative hypothesis that they are sister taxa. Characters of significance for phylogenetic relationships of Uraeotyphlidae are reviewed. Parsimony analysis of a combined data set, including new characters and others drawn from the literature, supports the hypothesis that Uraeotyphlidae is sister to the Ichthyophiidae; the new characters are instrumental in producing this result. A compatibility analysis lends further support to this conclusion.

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