A novel mitogenomic rearrangement for Odorrana schmackeri (Anura: Ranidae) and phylogeny of Ranidae inferred from thirteen mitochondrial protein-coding genes

We determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial genome of Odorrana schmackeri (family Ranidae). The O. schmackeri mitogenome (18 302 bp) contained 13 protein-coding genes, 2 rRNA genes, 21 tRNA genes and a single control region (CR). In the new mitogenome, the distinctive feature is the loss of tRNA-His, which could be explained by a hypothesis of gene substitution. The new sequence data was used to assess the phylogenetic relationships among 23 ranid species mostly from China using maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI). The phylogenetic analyses support two families (Ranidae, Dicroglossidae) for Chinese ranids. In Ranidae, we support the genus Amolops should be retained in the subfamily Raninae rather than in a distinct subfamily Amolopinae of its own. Meanwhile, the monophyly of the genus Odorrana was supported. Within Dicroglossidae, four tribes were well supported including Occidozygini, Dicroglossini, Limnonectini and Paini. More mitochondrial genomes and nuclear genes are required to decisively evaluate phylogenetic relationships of ranids.