The systematics of the polytypic species Dendrocolaptes certhia (Aves: Dendrocolaptidae) has been studied so far only through morphological characters, which have been unable to resolve relationships and provide consistent diagnoses for many
described taxa grouped under this species. Molecular characters thus become a potential tool to provide a higher degree of resolution concerning the evolutionary history of this polytypic species. We used a multilocus database combining two mitochondrial and three
nuclear genes from different loci, which was analyzed with different approaches (Bayesian, coalescent, and population genetics), to propose the first phylogeographic hypothesis for this polytypic species. The molecular data indicate that traditional taxonomy contrasts strongly with the evolutionary history of Dendrocolaptes certhia, with the recognition of seven diagnosable independent species rather than a single polytypic species. These seven species are distributed coincidentally with the main areas of endemism in the Amazon, and their diversification appears to be strongly correlated with the formation of the modern Amazonian drainage during Plio-Pleistocene times.
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