Molecular Phylogeny of the Ant Subfamily Formicinae (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) from China Based on Mitochondrial Genes

Authors

  • Zhilin Chen Guangxi Normal University
  • Shan Yi Zhou Guangxi Normal University
  • DuoDuo Ye Guangxi Normal University
  • Yuan Chen Guangxi Normal University
  • Chunwen Lu Guangxi Normal University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v60i2.135-144

Keywords:

Ant Phylogeny, Formicidae, Cyt b, COI, COII

Abstract

To resolve long-standing discrepancies in the relationships among genera within the ant subfamily Formicinae, a phylogenetic study of Chinese Formicine ants based on three mitochondria genes (Cyt b, COI, COII) was conducted. Phylogenetic trees obtained in the current study are consistent with several previously reported trees based on morphology, and specifically confirm and reinforce the classifications made by Bolton (1994). The tribes Lasiini, Formicini, Plagiolepidini and Camponotini are strongly supported, while Oecophyllini has moderate support despite being consistent across all analyses. We have also established that the genus Camponotus and Polyrhachis are indeed not monophyletic. Additionally, we found strong evidence for Polyrhachis paracamponota, as described by Wu and Wang in 1991, to be corrected as Camponotus based on molecular, morphological and behavioral data.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Shan Yi Zhou, Guangxi Normal University

PhD. Professor of Entomology at the College of Life Sciences

References

Agosti, D. (1991). Revision of the oriental ant genus Cladomyrma, with an outline of the higher classification of the Formicinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). System. Entom., 16: 293-310. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3113.1991.tb00690.x

Astruc, C., Julien, J. F., Errard, C. & Lenoir, A. (2004). Phylogeny of ants (Formicidae) based on morphology and DNA sequence data. Mol. Phylog. Evol., 31: 880-893. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2003.10.024 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2003.10.024

Baroni Urbani, C., Bolton, B. & Ward, P. S. (1992). The internal phylogeny of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). System. Entom., 17: 301-329. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3113.1992.tb00553.x

Bolton. B. (1994). Identification guide to the ant genera of the world. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 222 pp.

Bolton. B. (2011). Catalogue of species-group taxa. http://gap.entclub.org/contact.html. (accessed date: 1 March, 2011).

Bolton. B. (2003). Synopsis and classification of Formicidae. Mem. Am. Entomol. Inst., 71: 1-370.

Brady. S.G., Gadau, J. & Ward, P.S. (1999). Is the ant genus Camponotus paraphyletic? 4th International Hymenopterists Conference, Glen Osmond, South Australia, Canberra, Australia.

Brady, S.G., Gadau, J. & Ward, P.S. 2000. Systematics of the ant genus Camponotus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): a preliminary analysis using data from the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase I. In: Austin, A.D., Dowton, M. (Eds.), Hymenoptera. Evolution, Biodiversity and Biological Control. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Victoria, pp. 131-139, xi+ 468 pp.

Brady, S.G., Fisher, B.L., Schultz, T.R. & Ward, P.S. (2006). Evaluating alternative hypotheses for the early evolution and diversification of ants. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA., 103: 18172-18177. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0605858103 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0605858103

Chiotis, M., Jermiin, L.S. & Crozier, R.H. (2000). A Molecular Framework for the Phylogeny of the Ant Subfamily Dolichoderinae. Mol. Phylog. Evol., 17(1): 108-116. doi: 10.1006/mpev.2000.0821 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/mpev.2000.0821

Dlussky, G.M. (1999). The first find of the Formicoidea (Hymenoptera) in the lower Cretaceous of the northern hemisphere. [In Russian.] Paleontol. Zhurnal, 3: 62-66.

Emery, C. (1925). Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Formicinae. Gen. Insectorum, 183: 1-302.

Folmer, O., Black, M., Hoeh, W., Lutz, R. & Vrijenhoek, R. (1994). DNA primers for amplification of mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase subunit I from diverse metazoan invertebrates. Mol. Mar. Biol. and Biotech., 3(5): 294-299.

Grimaldi, D., Agosti, D. & Carpenter, J.M. (1997). New and rediscovered primitive ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Cretaceous amber from New Jersey, and their phylogenetic relationships. Am. Mus. Nov., 3208: 1-43.

Huelsenbeck, J.P. & Ronquist, F. (2001). MRBAYES: Bayesian inference of phylogeny. Bioinformatics, 17: 754-755. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bioinformatics/17.8.754

Johnson, R.N., Agapow, P.M. & Crozier, R.H. (2003). A tree island approach to inferring phylogeny in the ant subfamily Formicinae, with especial reference to the evolution of weaving. Mol. Phylog. Evol., 29: 317-330. doi: 10.1016/S1055-7903(803)00114-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S1055-7903(03)00114-3

LaPolla, J.S, Brady, S.G. & Shattuck, S.O. (2010). Phylogeny and taxonomy of the Prenolepis genus-group of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Syst. Entom., 35: 118-131. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3113.2009.00492.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3113.2009.00492.x

Moreau, C.S.., Bell, C.D., Vila, R., Archibald, S.B. & Pierce, N.E. (2006). Phylogeny of the ants: diversification in the age of angiosperms. Science, 312: 101-104. doi: 10.1126/science.1124891 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1124891

Navarro E., Jaffre T., Gauthier D., Gourbiere F., Rinaudo G., Simonet P. & Normand P. (1999). Distribution of Gymnostoma spp. microsymbiotic Frankia strains in New Caledonia is related to soil type and to host-plant species. Mol. Ecol., 8: 1781-1788. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-294x.1999.00742.x

Nylander, J.A.A., Ronquist, F., Huelsenbeck, J.P. & Nieves-Aldrey, J.L. (2004). Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of combined data. Syst.ms Biol., 53: 47-67 doi: 10.1080/10635150490264699 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10635150490264699

Nylander, J.A.A. (2004). MrModeltest v2, Program distributed by author. Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Uppsala.

Ouellette, G.D., Fisher, B.L. & Girman, D.J. (2006). Molecular systematics of basal subfamilies of ants using 28S rRNA (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Mol. Phylog. Evol., 40: 359-369. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2006.03.017 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2006.03.017

Posada, D. & Buckley, T.R. (2004). Model selection and model averaging in phylogenetics: advantages of Akaike information criterion and Bayesian approaches over likelihood ratio tests. Syst. Biol., 53: 793-808. doi: 10.1080/10635150490522304 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10635150490522304

Ronquist, F. & Huelsenbeck, J.P. (2003). MRBAYES 3: Bayesian phylogenetic inference under mixed models. Bioinformatics, 19: 1572-1574. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bioinformatics/btg180

Saux, C., Fisher, B.L. & Spicer, G.S. (2004). Dracula ant phylogeny as inferred by nuclear 28S rDNA sequence and implications for ant systematics (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Mol. Phylog. Evol., 33: 457-468. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2004.06.017 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2004.06.017

Swofford, D.L. (2002). PAUP*. Phylogenetic Analysis Using Parsimony (*and Other Methods), Vol. 4. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, MA.

Thompson, J.D., Gibson, T.J., Plewniak, F., Jeanmougin, F. & Higgins, D.G. (1997). The ClustalX windows interface: flexible strategies for multiple sequence alignment aided by quality analysis tools. Nuc. Acids Res., 25: 4876-4882. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/25.24.4876

Trager, J.C. (1984). A revision of the genus Nylanderia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the continental United States. Sociobiology, 9: 49-162.

Villesen, P., Mueller, U.G., Schultz, T.R., Adams, R.M.M. & Bouck, A.C. (2004). Evolution of ant-cultivar specialization and cultivar switching in Apterostigma fungus-growing ants. Evolution, 58: 2252-2265. doi: 10.1111/j.0014-3820.2004.tb01601.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0014-3820.2004.tb01601.x

Vogler, A.P. & Pearson, D.L. (1996). A molecular phylogeny of the tiger beetles (Cicindelidae): congruence of mitochondrial and nuclear rDNA data sets. Mol. Phylog. Evol., 6: 321-338. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/mpev.1996.0083

Wang, C.L. & Wu, J. (1991). Taxonomic Studies on the Genus Polyrhachis Mayr of China (Hymenoptera: Formicinae). For. Res., 4(6): 596-601.

Ward, P.S. & Brady, S.G. (2003). Phylogeny and biogeography of the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Invert. Syst., 17, 361-386. doi: 10.1071/IS02046 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1071/IS02046

Ward, P.S. & Downie, D.A. (2005). The ant subfamily Pseudomyrmecinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): phylogeny and evolution of big-eyed arboreal ants. Syst. Entom., 30: 310-335. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3113.2004.00281.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3113.2004.00281.x

Ward, P.S., Brady, S.G., Fisher, B.L. & Schultz, T.R. (2005). Assembling the ant “Tree of Life” (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecol. Nachrichten, 7: 87-90.

Ward, P.S. (2007). Phylogeny, classification, and species-level taxonomy of ants. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa, 1668: 549-563. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.1668.1.26

Wheeler, W.M. (1922). Ants of the American Museum Congo expedition. A contribution to the myrmecology of Africa. VII. Keys to the genera and subgenera of ants. Bul. Am.. Mus. Nat. Hist., 45: 631-710.

Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. (1953). The ant larvae of the subfamily Formicinae. Ann. Entom. Soc. Am., 46: 126-171. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/46.1.126

Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1985. A simplified conspectus of the Formicidae. Trans. Am. Entom. Soc., 111: 255-264.

Wilson, E.O. (1955). A monographic revision of the ant genus Lasius. Bul. Mus. Compar. Zool., 113: 1-201.

Wilson, E.O, & Taylor, R.W. (1964). A fossil ant colony: new evidence of social antiquity. Psyche, 71: 93-103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/1964/17612

Wilson, E.O. & Holldobler, B. (2005). The rise of the ants: a phylogenetic and ecological explanation. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, 102: 7411-7414. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0502264102

Downloads

Published

2013-06-29

How to Cite

Chen, Z., Zhou, S. Y., Ye, D., Chen, Y., & Lu, C. (2013). Molecular Phylogeny of the Ant Subfamily Formicinae (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) from China Based on Mitochondrial Genes. Sociobiology, 60(2), 135–144. https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v60i2.135-144

Issue

Vol. 60 No. 2 (2013)

Section

Research Article - Ants

License

Sociobiology is a diamond open access journal which means that all content is freely available without charge to the user or his/her institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author. This is in accordance with the BOAI definition of open access.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

 

    1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

 

    1. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

 

  1. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).