Location: Systematic Entomology Laboratory
2022 Annual Report
Objectives
Objective 1: Investigate the taxonomy and natural history of plant-feeding, agriculturally important flies, especially fruit flies, leaf-mining flies, and gall midges, using morphological and genomic molecular methods to analyze species concepts, discover possible cryptic fly species and host races, develop diagnoses, descriptions, illustrations and identification tools, create biosystematic databases, determine host plants, and analyze phylogenetic relationships. [C1, PS 1A; C2, PS 2B and 2C; C3, PS 3A and 3B; C4 PS 4A and 4B]
Objective 2: Curate and expand the U.S. National Diptera Collection to support agricultural research, and for use for morphological and molecular research by U.S. scientists and stakeholders worldwide. [C1, PS 1A; C2, PS 2B; C3, PS 3A and 3B; C4 PS 4A and 4B]
Objective 3: Provide scientific identifications of plant-feeding and other agriculturally important flies for APHIS-PPQ and other regulatory agencies. Accurate and rapid identification relies on both development of diagnostic tools through systematic research and collection improvement. [C1, PS 1A; C2, PS 2B; C3, PS 3A and 3B; C4 PS 4A and 4B]
Approach
This project focuses on the systematics of agriculturally important groups of flies, including pest fruit flies and leaf-mining flies. Taxonomic knowledge, including predictive, phylogenetically-based classifications, and diagnostic tools to rapidly and accurately identify these fly species are crucial to exclude and control the pests and effectively use the beneficial agents. Morphology will be investigated using traditional and new character sets to test species concepts and hypotheses of relationships among these flies, and to develop new diagnostic tools. Molecular data from mitochondrial and nuclear genes will be generated for fly identification and phylogenetics. This will include phylogenomics for assessing both deep and shallow evolutionary relationships using the anchored hybridization approach to multigene sequencing. Biosystematic data about flies will be compiled, verified and disseminated to the user community. Databases containing scientific names, distributions, taxonomic literature, and host plant and specimen data pertaining to fruit flies will be expanded and improved. These and other taxonomic tools will be made accessible to the public via publications, the Internet, and other electronic media. The U.S. National Diptera Collection will be curated and expanded to support agricultural research and to allow morphological and molecular research by U.S. and other scientists.
Progress Report
This is the final report for 8042-22310-001-00D. For further information see report for project 8042-22000-317-00D.
Published research on the systematics of true fruit flies analyses included new host plant information and descriptions of 46 previously unknown species from Bolivia, Colombia, Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil belonging to the largest and most economically important group of fruit flies in the American tropics (Anastrepha). Previously unknown larval characters were described for nine species. Evolutionary history of host use in a genus containing sunflower maggot was performed. An evolutionary analysis of the drivers of worldwide global fruit fly invasions was carried out. Further development of an online identification tool for the more than 350 species of Anastrepha was developed to facilitate identifications by other scientists. Hundreds of samples of Anestrepha and other groups were collected from Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, and Suriname for DNA analysis. An analysis of more than 2700 DNA barcoding sequences of Anastrepha also was completed, and the investigation of additional DNA regions for diagnostics and phylogenetic analysis continued. A subsample of species were analyzed via NextGen sequencing methods towards a phylogenetic analysis to determine evolutionary relationships of the entire family of highly damaging flies. Additional names, distribution and host plant data for fruit flies were compiled to be added to the comprehensive database available via APHIS-CPHST web site; this information is critical to APHIS-PPQ and other regulatory agencies to prevent the spread of pest species into the U.S.
Phylogenomic data were collected and analyzed in order to determine phylogenetic relationships among leafmining Agromyzidae, a family containing numerous important plant pests. Using anchored hybrid enrichment (AHE) more than 500 nuclear gene sequences per individual were analyzed to determine relationships among agromyzid genera. This resulted in a well-supported phylogeny leading to the proposal of new nomenclatural changes in the number and composition of subfamilies. AHE data were also used to investigate relationships within Phytomyza and Liriomyza, genera containing numerous polyphagous pest species, including the globally invasive L. huidobrensis, L. sativae, and L. trifolii. To further explore patterns of host-use in pest Liriomyza leafminers, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were used to assess population genomic structure, as well as host-plant associated and geographic divergence within both L. trifolii and L. sativae. These results offer insights on the evolution of host-use patterns, divergence, and specialization in Liriomyza pest species, including the findings of cryptic species and host-associated subpopulations. This information will provide important biological information on pest populations occurring in the field as well as for those involved with transport and quarantine. Proposed nomenclatural changes will be improve the stability and predictive power of the taxonomic framework for agromyzid flies. This information will be of value to pest managers, researcher scientists, and APHIS.
Diptera Collection. Incoming Diptera specimens from SEL collecting efforts and from other scientists have been safeguarded and processed as far as possible.
Scientific identification of agriculturally important flies. In the last year, 255 submittals were identified, including "urgent" submittals for USDA-APHIS-PPQ of specimens intercepted on perishable commodities at ports-of-entry.
Accomplishments
Review Publications
Rodriguez Clavijo, P.A., Norrbom, A.L. 2021. New species and new records of Anastrepha (Diptera: Tephritidae) from Colombia. Zootaxa. 5004:107-130. https://doi.org/10.11646/ZOOTAXA.5004.1.4.
Norrbom, A.L., Muller, A., Gangadin, A., Sutton, B., Rodriguez, E., Savaris, M., Lampert, S., Rodriguez Clavijo, P., Steck, G., Moore, M., Nolazco, A., Troya, H., Keil, C.B., Padilla, A., Wiegmann, B., Cassel, B., Branham, M., Ruiz-Arce, R. 2021. New species and host plants of Anastrepha (Diptera: Tephritidae) primarily from Suriname and Pará, Brazil. Zootaxa. 5044:1-74. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5044.1.1.
Rodriguez-Clavijo, P.A., Norrbom, A.L., Caicedo, G., Arevalo, E., Balseiro, F. 2021. New species and host plant records for Rhagoletis Loew (Diptera: Tephritidae). Zootaxa. 5060:231-144. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5060.2.4.
Zhang, Q., Hoover, D.R., Mcmillian, D.R., Zhou, G., Margaryan, A., Welshons, D.O., Norrbom, A.L., Aldrich, J.R. 2021. Synergistic attraction of kleptoparasitic flies, Desmometopa spp. (Diptera, Milichiidae) to two vespid venom volatiles, trans-conophthorin, and N-(3-methylbutyl) acetamide. Chemoecology. 32:89-94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00049-021-00365-1.
Kettani, K., Norrbom, A.L. 2022. Tephritidae, In: Catalog of the Diptera of Morocco. An annotated checklist, distribution and bibliography. Zootaxa. 1094:260-269. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1094.62644.
