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Determination of biotypes of Dactylopius tomentosus (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) and insights into the taxonomic relationships of their hosts, Cylindropuntia spp.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 December 2009

C.W. Mathenge ,
P. Holford ,
J.H. Hoffmann ,
H.G. Zimmermann ,
R. Spooner-Hart  and
G.A.C. Beattie
C.W. Mathenge
Affiliation:
Zoology Department, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch7701, Cape Town, South Africa Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X134, Pretoria0001, South Africa Centre for Plants and the Environment, University of Western Sydney(Hawkesbury Campus), Locked Bag 1797, Penrith South DC, NSW1797, Australia
P. Holford*
Affiliation:
Centre for Plants and the Environment, University of Western Sydney(Hawkesbury Campus), Locked Bag 1797, Penrith South DC, NSW1797, Australia
J.H. Hoffmann
Affiliation:
Zoology Department, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch7701, Cape Town, South Africa
H.G. Zimmermann
Affiliation:
Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Council, Private Bag X134, Pretoria0001, South Africa
R. Spooner-Hart
Affiliation:
Centre for Plants and the Environment, University of Western Sydney(Hawkesbury Campus), Locked Bag 1797, Penrith South DC, NSW1797, Australia
G.A.C. Beattie
Affiliation:
Centre for Plants and the Environment, University of Western Sydney(Hawkesbury Campus), Locked Bag 1797, Penrith South DC, NSW1797, Australia
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: +61 2 4570 1314 E-mail: p.holford@uws.edu.au
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Abstract

Host specialization to form biotypes is common among phytophagous insects, and it has been hypothesised that biotypes of Dactylopius tomentosus L. (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) occur. D. tomentosus is an important biological control agent for Cylindropuntia cacti when they occur as weeds. Additionally, there is uncertainty surrounding the taxonomic status of some species of Cylindropuntia. This study aimed to confirm the existence of D. tomentosus biotypes and to assess whether host specialization can help to resolve this systematic uncertainty. For this study, the host specificity and performance of ten provenances of D. tomentosus collected from C. cholla, C. fulgida var. fulgida, C. imbricata, C. f. var. mamillata, C. rosea and C. tunicata and reared on C. cholla, C. fulgida var. fulgida, C. imbricata and C. rosea were investigated. Five life-history parameters were measured including: crawler development time and survival, female development time, and the weight and number of eggs produced by females. Results revealed significant variation in host specificity with provenances either thriving, surviving or dying on the different hosts, thus demonstrating the existence of biotypes. Also, host specificity was related to host species and not to the geographic locality from which either the host or provenance was sourced. These findings suggest that the characteristics of Cylindropuntia species may differ sufficiently, there by presenting different selection pressures that induce and sustain distinct biotypes of D. tomentosus. The observed host use patterns of the biotypes separated the plant species into two groups that accorded with known phylogenetic relationships among Cylindropuntia species, suggesting that biotypes can be used to elucidate their taxonomic relatedness. Besides advancing our knowledge of the ecology and evolution of D. tomentosus, these novel findings have important implications for the biological control of Cylindropuntia species.

Keywords

Dactylopiushost specializationbiotypeshost plant taxonomyCylindropuntia

Information

Type
Research Paper
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 100 , Issue 3 , June 2010 , pp. 347 - 358
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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