Ultraconserved elements-based systematics reveals evolutionary patterns of host-plant family shifts and phytophagy within the predominantly parasitoid braconid wasp subfamily Doryctinae

Mitogenome architecture supports the non-monophyly of the cosmopolitan parasitoid wasp subfamily Doryctinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) recovered by nuclear and mitochondrial phylogenomics

Mitochondrial DNA gene organisation is an important source of phylogenetic information for various metazoan taxa at different evolutionary timescales, though this has not been broadly tested for all insect groups nor within a phylogenetic context. The cosmopolitan subfamily Doryctinae is a highly diverse group of braconid wasps mainly represented by ectoparasitoids of xylophagous beetle larvae. Previous molecular studies based on Sanger and genome-wide (ultraconserved elements, UCE; and mitochondrial genomes) sequence data have recovered a non-monophyletic Doryctinae, though the relationships involved have always been weakly supported. We characterised doryctine mitogenomes and conducted separate phylogenetic analyses based on mitogenome and UCE sequence data of ~100 representative doryctine genera to assess the monophyly and higher-level classification of the subfamily. We identified rearrangements of mitochondrial transfer RNAs (tRNAs) that support a non-monophyletic Doryctinae consisting of two separate non-related clades with strong geographic structure ('New World' and 'Old World' clades). This geographic structure was also consistently supported by the phylogenetic analyses preformed with mitogenome and UCE sequence data. These results highlight the utility of the mitogenome gene rearrangements as a potential source of phylogenetic information at different evolutionary timescales.

Integrated phylogenomic approaches in insect systematics

The increased accessibility of genomic and imaging methods, and the improved access to ecological, spatial, and other natural history-related data is allowing for insect systematics to grow and find answers to central evolutionary and taxonomic questions. Today, integrated studies in insect phylogenomics and systematics are combining natural history, behavior, developmental biology, morphology, fossils, geographic range data, and ecological interactions. This integration is contributing to the clarification of evolutionary relationships, and the recognition of the role played by these factors on the evolution of insects. Future work should continue to build on these advances, seeking to further increase open-access databasing and support for natural history research, as well as expand its analytical palettes.