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A revision of Malagasy species of Anochetus mayr and Odontomachus latreille (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

ABSTRACT: Species inventories are essential for documenting global diversity and generating necessary material for taxonomic study and conservation planning. However, for inventories to be immediately relevant, the taxonomic process must reduce the time to describe and identify specimens. To address these concerns for the inventory of arthropods across the Malagasy region, we present here a collaborative approach to taxonomy where collectors, morphologists and DNA barcoders using cytochrome c oxidase 1 (CO1) participate collectively in a team-driven taxonomic process. We evaluate the role of DNA barcoding as a tool to accelerate species identification and description. This revision is primarily based on arthropod surveys throughout the Malagasy region from 1992 to 2006. The revision is based on morphological and CO1 DNA barcode analysis of 500 individuals. In the region, five species of Anochetus (A. boltonisp. nov., A. goodmanisp. nov., A. grandidieri, and A. madagascarensis from Madagascar, and A. pattersonisp. nov. from Seychelles) and three species of Odontomachus (O. coquereli, O. troglodytes and O. simillimus) are recognized. DNA barcoding (using cytochrome c oxidase 1 (CO1)) facilitated caste association and type designation, and highlighted population structure associated with reproductive strategy, biogeographic and evolutionary patterns for future exploration. This study provides an example of collaborative taxonomy, where morphology is combined with DNA barcoding. We demonstrate that CO1 DNA barcoding is a practical tool that allows formalized alpha-taxonomy at a speed, detail, precision, and scale unattainable by employing morphology alone.

SUBMITTER: Fisher BL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2387237 | biostudies-literature | 2008 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A revision of Malagasy species of Anochetus mayr and Odontomachus latreille (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Fisher Brian L BL Smith M Alex MA

PloS one 20080528 5

Species inventories are essential for documenting global diversity and generating necessary material for taxonomic study and conservation planning. However, for inventories to be immediately relevant, the taxonomic process must reduce the time to describe and identify specimens. To address these concerns for the inventory of arthropods across the Malagasy region, we present here a collaborative approach to taxonomy where collectors, morphologists and DNA barcoders using cytochrome c oxidase 1 (C ...[more]

PMID: 18509544

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Project description:BackgroundThe Malagasy Region, one of the top megadiversity regions, hosts one of the highest numbers of endemic and threatened organisms on earth. One of the most spectacular examples of ant radiation on the island has occurred in the hyperdiverse genus Pheidole. To this date, there are 135 described Madagascan Pheidole divided into 16 species-groups, and 97% of Malagasy species are endemic to the island. This study is a taxonomic revision of the Pheidole megacephala group, one of only two species-groups comprising a combination of native, endemic taxa and widely distributed introduced species.MethodsThe diversity of the Malagasy members of the megacephala group was assessed via application of qualitative morphological and DNA sequence data. Qualitative, external morphological characteristics (e.g., head shape, gaster sculpture, body colouration) were evaluated in order to create a priori grouping hypotheses, and confirm and improve species delimitation. Mitochondrial DNA sequences from cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene fragments were analyzed to test the putative species previously delimited by morphological analyses.ResultsWe recognize three species belonging to the megacephala group: P. megacephala (Fabricius, 1793), P. megatron Fischer & Fisher, 2013 and P. spinosa Forel, 1891 stat. nov. Pheidole spinosa is redescribed and elevated to the species level. The following names are recognized as junior synonyms of P. spinosa: P. megacephala scabrior Forel, 1891 syn. nov., P. picata Forel, 1891 syn. nov., P. picata gietleni Forel, 1905 syn. nov., P. picata bernhardae Emery, 1915 syn. nov., and P. decepticon Fischer & Fisher, 2013 syn. nov. The results are supplemented with an identification key to species for major workers of the megacephala group, high-resolution images for major and minor workers, and comments on the distribution and biology of all Malagasy members of the group. Our study revealed that Pheidole megacephala, a species listed among the 100 worst invasive species worldwide, occurs in both natural and disturbed sites in the Malagasy region. The two remaining members of the megacephala group, most likely endemic to this region, are also present in anthropogenic habitats and often co-occur with P. megacephala. It appears that the Malagasy members of the group are generalists and dominant in anthropogenic habitats. Additionally, we documented the presence of supermajors in colonies of P. spinosa-a phenomenon previously not known for this group.

Project description:BackgroundMadagascar is famous for its extremely rich biodiversity; the island harbors predominantly endemic and threatened communities meriting special attention from biodiversity scientists. Continuing ongoing efforts to inventory the Malagasy ant fauna, we revise the species currently placed in the myrmicine genus Aphaenogaster Mayr. One species described from Madagascar, Aphaenogaster friederichsi Forel, is synonymized with the Palearctic A. subterranea Latreille syn. nov. This species is considered neither native to Madagascar nor established in the region. This revision focuses on the balance of species in the A. swammerdami group which are all endemic to Madagascar.MethodsThe diversity of the Malagasy Aphaenogaster fauna was assessed via application of multiple lines of evidence involving quantitative morphometric, qualitative morphological, and DNA sequence data. (1) Morphometric investigation was based on hypothesis-free Nest Centroid clustering (NC-clustering) combined with PArtitioning based on Recursive Thresholding (PART) to estimate the number of morphological clusters and determine the most probable boundaries between them. This protocol provides a repeatable and testable approach to find patterns in continuous morphometric data. Species boundaries and the reliability of morphological clusters recognized by these exploratory analyses were tested via confirmatory Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA). (2) Qualitative, external morphological characteristics (e.g., shape, coloration patterns, setae number) were subjectively evaluated in order to create a priori grouping hypotheses, and confirm and improve species delimitation. (3) Species delimitation analyses based on mitochondrial DNA sequences from cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene fragments were carried out to test the putative species previously delimited by morphological and morphometric analyses.ResultsFive species can be inferred based on the integrated evaluation of multiple lines of evidence; of these, three are new to science: Aphaenogaster bressleri sp. n., A. gonacantha (Emery, 1899), A. makay sp. n., A. sahafina sp. n., and A. swammerdami Forel, 1886. In addition, three new synonymies were found for A. swammerdami Forel, 1886 (A. swammerdami clara Santschi, 1915 syn. n., A. swammerdami curta Forel, 1891 syn. n. and A. swammerdami spinipes Santschi, 1911 syn. n.). Descriptions and redefinitions for each taxon and an identification key for their worker castes using qualitative traits and morphometric data are given. Geographic maps depicting species distributions and biological information regarding nesting habits for the species are also provided.

Project description:The taxonomy of the Tetramorium naganum, T. plesiarum, T. schaufussii, and T. severini species groups are revised for the Malagasy region. A total of 31 species are treated, of which 22 are newly described and nine redescribed. This increases the richness of the hyper-diverse genus Tetramorium in the Malagasy region to 106 species, which makes it the most species-rich genus in the region. Twenty-nine of the treated species are endemic to Madagascar, one is endemic to the Comoros, and one species is found predominantly in Madagascar but also on the island of Reunion. The T. naganum species group contains five species, which are mainly distributed in the rainforests and montane rainforests of eastern and northern Madagascar: T. alperti sp. n., T. dalek sp. n., T. enkidu sp. n., T. gilgamesh sp. n., and T. naganum Bolton, 1979. The T. plesiarum species group holds five species: T. bressleri sp. n., T. hobbit sp. n., T. gollum sp. n., T. mars sp. n., and T. plesiarum Bolton, 1979. All five are arid-adapted species occurring in the southwest and west of Madagascar. The second-most species-rich group in the region is the T. schaufussii species group with 20 species, most of which inhabit rainforests or montane rainforests of eastern and northern Madagascar. This group includes two species complexes each containing ten species: the T. cognatum complex with the species T. aspis sp. n., T. camelliae sp. n., T. cognatum Bolton, 1979, T. freya sp. n., T. gladius sp. n., T. karthala sp. n., T. myrmidon sp. n., T. proximum Bolton, 1979, T. rumo sp. n., and T. tenuinode sp. n.; and the T. schaufussii complex with the species T. merina sp. n., T. monticola sp. n., T. nassonowii Forel, 1892 stat. n., T. obiwan sp. n., T. pseudogladius sp. n., T. rala sp. n., T. schaufussii Forel, 1891, T. sikorae Forel, 1892 (= T. latior (Santschi, 1926)), T. scutum sp. n., T. xanthogaster Santschi, 1911. The last group treated in this study is the T. severini species group, which contains only the species T. severini (Emery, 1895). This very conspicuous species is widely distributed in the rainforests and montane rainforests of eastern and northern Madagascar. All four groups are fully revised with group diagnoses, illustrated species-level identification keys, and detailed descriptions for all species that include multifocused montage images and distribution maps.

Project description:The Malagasy Camponotus edmondi species group is revised based on both qualitative morphological traits and multivariate analysis of continuous morphometric data. To minimize the effect of the scaling properties of diverse traits due to worker caste polymorphism, and to achieve the desired near-linearity of data, morphometric analyses were done only on minor workers. The majority of traits exhibit broken scaling on head size, dividing Camponotus workers into two discrete subcastes, minors and majors. This broken scaling prevents the application of algorithms that uses linear combination of data to the entire dataset, hence only minor workers were analyzed statistically. The elimination of major workers resulted in linearity and the data meet required assumptions. However, morphometric ratios for the subsets of minor and major workers were used in species descriptions and redefinitions. Prior species hypotheses and the goodness of clusters were tested on raw data by confirmatory linear discriminant analysis. Due to the small sample size available for some species, a factor known to reduce statistical reliability, hypotheses generated by exploratory analyses were tested with extreme care and species delimitations were inferred via the combined evidence of both qualitative (morphology and biology) and quantitative data. Altogether, fifteen species are recognized, of which 11 are new to science: Camponotus alamainasp. n., Camponotus androysp. n., Camponotus bevohitrasp. n., Camponotus galokosp. n., Camponotus matsilosp. n., Camponotus mifakasp. n., Camponotus orombesp. n., Camponotus tafosp. n., Camponotus tratrasp. n., Camponotus varatrasp. n., and Camponotus zavosp. n. Four species are redescribed: Camponotus echinoploides Forel, Camponotus edmondi André, Camponotus ethicus Forel, and Camponotus robustus Roger. Camponotus edmondi ernesti Forel, syn. n. is synonymized under Camponotus edmondi. This revision also includes an identification key to species for both minor and major castes, information on geographic distribution and biology, taxonomic discussions, and descriptions of intraspecific variation. Traditional taxonomy and multivariate morphometric analysis are independent sources of information which, in combination, allow more precise species delimitation. Moreover, quantitative characters included in identification keys improve accuracy of determination in difficult cases.

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Dataset Information

A revision of Malagasy species of Anochetus mayr and Odontomachus latreille (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Publications

A revision of Malagasy species of Anochetus mayr and Odontomachus latreille (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

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