A taxonomic and phylogenetic study of the oriental Alysiinae and Opiinae (Hymenoptera braconidae)

PhD ceremony: Ms. S. Yaakop, 11.00 uur, Academiegebouw, Broerstraat 5, Groningen

Title: A taxonomic and phylogenetic study of the oriental Alysiinae and Opiinae (Hymenoptera braconidae)

Promotor(s): prof. M. Schilthuizen

Faculty: Mathematics and Natural Sciences

 

The taxonomy and phylogeny of two subfamilies of the family Braconidae (Hymenoptera), viz. Alysiinae and Opiinae, were investigated by performing a molecular phylogenetic study. Chapter 1 of the thesis covers the general introduction, specifying the objectives of the research project. Chapter 2 comprises a complete revision of the genus Heratemis Walker, 1860 (Alysiinae: Alysiini). Fourteen out of a total of 28 species are described as new to science and an identification key to the species is presented. A revision of the Oriental Alysiinae, with identification keys to the genera and species, is presented in Chapter 3. In total 21 species were found to be new to science. Without doubt many more taxa are awaiting discovery, considering the amount of undescribed examined species. The combination of four molecular markers (28S, 16S, COI and ND1) was used to improve a reconstruction of the phylogeny of the Alysiinae.The molecular phylogeny reconstruction of the Oriental Opiinae, as shown in Chapter 4, had to be restricted to a set of available Malaysian species. The best phylogenetic reconstruction was obtained by a combination of the results of three molecular markers (28S, 16S and ND1). The phylogenetic relationships of the subfamilies Alysiinae and Opiinae are discussed in Chapter 5. The monophyly of both the Alysiinae and Opiinae, and a sister relationship between these taxa, resulted from the analyses of the molecular data. For the Oriental taxa hardly any biological data are available, but the basal groups both within the Alysiinae and Opiinae consist of parasitoids associated with leaf-mining larvae.