Historical biogeography of the Neotropical legume genus Dussia: the Andes, the Panams Isthmus and the Choco

Phylogenetic relationships of species in the papilionoid legume genus Dussia Krug & Urb. ex Taub. were investigated using nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacers and chloroplast trnL and trnD-T DNA sequences. Bayesian phylogenetic dating techniques suggest that: (1) the uplift of the Andean Mountains created a biogeographical barrier to migration but also contributed to speciation; (2) migration between South America and Central America occurred before the closure of the Panamanian isthmus, indicating that for Dussia the Pacific Ocean was less of a barrier than the Andes; and (3) the biogeographic affinities of species from the Chocó biogeographical region are with Central America