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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Systematic Entomology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #282653
Title: A phylogenetic analysis of the megadiverse Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera)

Author
item HERATY, J. - University Of California
item BURKS, R. - The Ohio State University
item CRUAUD, A. - Inland Northwest Research Alliance, Inra
item GIBSON, G.A. - Carleton University - Canada
item LILJEBLAD, J. - Swedish University Of Agricultural Sciences
item MUNRO, J. - Genome Science Centre-Canada
item RASPLUS, J. - Inland Northwest Research Alliance, Inra
item DELVARE, G. - Centro De Cooperation Internationale En Recherche Agronomique Pour Le Development (CIRAD)
item JANSTA, P. - University Of Charleston
item GUMOVSKY, A. - Institute Of Zoology - Bulgaria
item HUBER, J. - University Of Ottawa
item WOOLLEY, J. - Texas A&M University
item KROGMANN, L. - Stuttgart University
item HEYDON, S. - University Of California
item POLASZEK, A. - Natural History Museum - London
item SCHMIDT, S. - State Museum Of Natural History
item DARLING, C. - Ontario Ministry Of Agriculture
item Gates, Michael
item MOTTERN, J. - University Of California
item DALMOLIN, A. - Texas A&M University
item MURRAY, E. - University Of California
item TRIAPITSYN, S. - University Of California
item BAUR, H. - Vetsuisse Berne
item PINTO, J. - University Of California
item VAN NOORT, S. - South African National Biodiversity Institute
item GEORGE, J. - University Of California
item YODER, M. - North Carolina State University

Submitted to: Cladistics
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/19/2012
Publication Date: 12/15/2012
Citation: Heraty, J.M., Burks, R.A., Cruaud, A., Gibson, G.P., Liljeblad, J., Munro, J., Rasplus, J.Y., Delvare, G., Jansta, P., Gumovsky, A., Huber, J., Woolley, J.B., Krogmann, L., Heydon, S.L., Polaszek, A.P., Schmidt, S., Darling, C., Gates, M.W., Mottern, J., Dalmolin, A., Murray, E., Triapitsyn, S., Baur, H., Pinto, J., Van Noort, S., George, J., Yoder, M.J. 2012. A phylogenetic analysis of the megadiverse Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera). Cladistics. 1-77.

Interpretive Summary: Parasitic wasps are important components in the biological control of agricultural crop pests worldwide and prevent millions of dollars in damage each year. Certain parasitic wasps are also plant pests, deforming plants or attacking seeds. Understanding relationships among such wasps provides a predictive framework for understanding pest/beneficial status or placing new species in context of known species.Taxonomists, systematists, biocontrol workers, scientists, and ecologists working with these parasitic wasps will find this information useful.

Technical Abstract: Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera) are extremely diverse with an estimated 500,000 species. We present the first phylogenetic analysis of the superfamily based on a cladistic analysis of both morphological and molecular data. A total of 233 morphological characters were scored for 300 taxa and 265 genera, and comprising 19 families and 79 of 84 subfamilies. To score morphological data, we developed a well-illustrated and documented on-line character coding system using a content management system, mx. These data were analyzed in combination with ribosomal 18S (2105 bases) and 28S D2-D5 expansion regions (1812 bases). Analyses were conducted on morphology-only and combined datasets using implied-weights parsimony (TNT) and likelihood (RAxML) analyses. Recovery of traditional groupings was highest for the likelihood analyses, and only the combined analyses recovered sensible higher-level groups. Morphological changes were optimized onto the likelihood results based on an extended majority rule consensus tree from 20 independent RAxML analyses. Chalcidoid families recovered as monophyletic were Agaonidae, Eulophidae (excluding Trisecodes), Mymaridae, Chalcididae, Encyrtidae, Eucharitidae (including Akapalinae), Eupelmidae (including Oodera), Eurytomidae, Leucospidae, Ormyridae, Rotoitidae, Signiphoridae, Tanaostigmatidae (excluding Cynipencyrtus), Torymidae and Trichogrammatidae. Tetracampidae were paraphyletic to Eulophidae, and Perilampidae were paraphyletic to Eucharitidae. Aphelinidae were polyphyletic by including Signiphoridae and Trichogrammatidae. As expected, Pteromalidae were polyphyletic. As in molecular-only analyses, most subfamily groups were monophyletic. At a higher level, Chalcidoidea were monophyletic, with Mymaridae the sister group of Rotoitidae plus the remaining Chalcidoidea. A eulophid lineage was recovered that included Aphelinidae, Eulophidae, Signiphoridae, Tetracampidae and Trichogrammatidae. Eucharitidae and Perilampidae were monophyletic if Eutrichosomatinae was included. Likelihood recovered a clade of Eupelmidae + (Tanaostigmatidae + (Cynipencyrtus + Encyrtidae). Support for other lineages and their impact on the classification of Chalcidoidea is discussed. Several traits are mapped onto the new phylogeny, including planidial larvae, phytophagy, egg parasitism, metallic coloration, heteronomy and parasitism of Sternorrhyncha. Several changes in higher classification are proposed.