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Molecular systematics, biogeography, and colony fusion in the European dry-wood termites Kalotermes spp. (Blattodea, Termitoidae, Kalotermitidae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 October 2017

V. Scicchitano ,
F. Dedeine ,
B. Mantovani  and
A. Luchetti
V. Scicchitano
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali – Università di Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
F. Dedeine
Affiliation:
Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte, UMR 7261, CNRS – Université François-Rabelais de Tours, Parc Grandmont, 37200 Tours, France
B. Mantovani
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali – Università di Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
A. Luchetti*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali – Università di Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
*
*Author for correspondence Tel: +390512094165 Fax: +390512094286 E-mail: andrea.luchetti@unibo.it
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Abstract

European dry-wood termites belong to the genus Kalotermes (Kalotermitidae), one of the two termite genera in Europe. Until the recent description of two new species, Kalotermes italicus in Italy and Kalotermes phoenicae in the eastern Mediterranean area, Kalotermes flavicollis was the only taxon known in this region. The presence of additional entities, suggested by morphological and physiological variation observed in K. flavicollis, was supported by molecular studies revealing four distinct genetic lineages: lineage A, K. flavicollis sensu strictu, from the Aegean area to Italy; lineage B, in Tuscany; lineage SC, in Sardinia and Corsica; lineage SF, in southern France. Lineages A and B may form mixed colonies, suggesting hybridization. To draw a more detailed picture of Kalotermes evolution and biogeography in Europe, we analyzed samples from previously unsampled areas, such as Spain and southern Italy, by means of the highly informative cox1/trnL/cox2 mitochondrial DNA marker. Overall, phylogenetic analyses confirmed previously identified lineages and taxa, but widened the distribution of the lineage SC to the mainland and of the lineage SF to Spain and Portugal. Results further provided evidence for the synonymy between lineage B and K. italicus. Species delimitation analysis suggested that the three K. flavicollis lineages, as well as K. italicus, can be separate taxa. Data also suggest a possible interspecific hybridization between K. italicus and both K. flavicollis lineages A and SC.

Keywords

hybridizationmolecular diversitysocial insectsEuropean species distributiontermitescolony structure
Type
Research Papers
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 108 , Issue 4 , August 2018 , pp. 523 - 531
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

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