Evaluation of identification methods for cryptic Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae) specimens: combining morphological and molecular techniques.

ABSTRACT: The potential for population genomics to elucidate invasion pathways of a species is limited by taxonomic identification issues. The Oriental fruit fly pest, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) belongs to a complex in which several sympatric species are attracted to the same lure used in trapping and are morphologically cryptic and/or reported to hybridize. In this study, we evaluated the taxonomic ambiguity between B. dorsalis and 2 major cryptic species, based on morphological expertise and 289 target specimens sampled across the whole distribution range. Specimens were then subjected to DNA sequence analyses of the COI mitochondrial barcode and the EIF3L nuclear marker to evaluate the potential for molecular identification, in particular for specimens for which morphological identification was

SUBMITTER: Charbonnel E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10711562 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature