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Hussain A, Kakar A, Naseem M, Kamran K, Ullah Z, Shehla S, Obaid MK, Ahmed N, Khan Q, Liaqat I. Molecular identification of Hymenopteran insects collected by using Malaise traps from Hazarganji Chiltan National Park Quetta, Pakistan. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0300903. [PMID: 38598453 PMCID: PMC11006193 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The order Hymenoptera holds great significance for humans, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions, due to its role as a pollinator of wild and cultivated flowering plants, parasites of destructive insects and honey producers. Despite this importance, limited attention has been given to the genetic diversity and molecular identification of Hymenopteran insects in most protected areas. This study provides insights into the first DNA barcode of Hymenopteran insects collected from Hazarganji Chiltan National Park (HCNP) and contributes to the global reference library of DNA barcodes. A total of 784 insect specimens were collected using Malaise traps, out of which 538 (68.62%) specimens were morphologically identified as Hymenopteran insects. The highest abundance of species of Hymenoptera (133/538, 24.72%) was observed during August and least in November (16/538, 2.97%). Genomic DNA extraction was performed individually from 90/538 (16.73%) morphologically identified specimens using the standard phenol-chloroform method, which were subjected separately to the PCR for their molecular confirmation via the amplification of cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene. The BLAST analyses of obtained sequences showed 91.64% to 100% identities with related sequences and clustered phylogenetically with their corresponding sequences that were reported from Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Finland, Germany, India, Israel, and Pakistan. Additionally, total of 13 barcode index numbers (BINs) were assigned by Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD), out of which 12 were un-unique and one was unique (BOLD: AEU1239) which was assigned for Anthidium punctatum. This indicates the potential geographical variation of Hymenopteran population in HCNP. Further comprehensive studies are needed to molecularly confirm the existing insect species in HCNP and evaluate their impacts on the environment, both as beneficial (for example, pollination, honey producers and natural enemies) and detrimental (for example, venomous stings, crop damage, and pathogens transmission).
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Affiliation(s)
- Abid Hussain
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Asmatullah Kakar
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Mahrukh Naseem
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Kashif Kamran
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Zafar Ullah
- Department of Zoology, University of Loralai, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Shehla Shehla
- Department of Zoology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Kashif Obaid
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Nazeer Ahmed
- Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Qaiser Khan
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan
| | - Iram Liaqat
- Department of Zoology, Government College University, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
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DNA Barcode Library of Megadiverse Lepidoptera in an Alpine Nature Park (Italy) Reveals Unexpected Species Diversity. DIVERSITY 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/d15020214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Species inventories are a prerequisite for biodiversity monitoring and conservation, particularly in protected areas. However, the possibilities of a standardized survey of species diversity using DNA barcoding have so far hardly been implemented, especially in species-rich groups. A first-time molecular-based and nearly complete inventory of the megadiverse insect order Lepidoptera in a protected area in the Alps (Cottian Alps, Italy) was intended to test the possibilities and reliability of DNA-based identifications. From voucher material collected between 2019 and 2022, we successfully sequenced 1213 morphospecies that grouped into 1204 BINs (barcode index numbers), whereas DNA barcoding failed for another 18 species. A total of 35 species shared a BIN with one or more taxa, but a majority of 19 species could still be discriminated by divergent sequences. A total of 12 morphospecies split into two BINs. These species and a further 22 taxa with unique BINs and barcode divergences >2% to the nearest neighbor require taxonomic re-assessment. Two additional cryptic species from the study area were described recently. Finally, 16 species are newly recorded for Italy. Our study, therefore, demonstrates the importance of DNA barcoding for both faunistics and the discovery of cryptic diversity, even in apparently well-studied protected areas.
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Boyes D, Lees D. The genome sequence of the merveille du jour, Griposia aprilina (Linnaeus, 1758). Wellcome Open Res 2022; 7:247. [PMID: 36865376 PMCID: PMC9971638 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.18122.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a genome assembly from an individual Griposia aprilina (the merveille du jour; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Noctuidae). The genome sequence is 720 megabases in span. The majority of the assembly (99.89%) is scaffolded into 32 chromosomal pseudomolecules with the W and Z sex chromosomes assembled. The complete mitochondrial genome was also assembled and is 15.4 kilobases in length.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglas Boyes
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, UK
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Boyes D, Gibbs M. The genome sequence of the clay, Mythimna ferrago (Fabricius, 1787). Wellcome Open Res 2022; 7:177. [PMID: 36051895 PMCID: PMC9382153 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.17923.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a genome assembly from an individual female Mythimna ferrago (the clay; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Noctuidae). The genome sequence is 861 megabases in span. The majority of the assembly (99.98%) is scaffolded into 32 chromosomal pseudomolecules, with the W and Z chromosomes assembled. The complete mitochondrial genome was also assembled and is 15.3 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl has identified 14,075 protein coding genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglas Boyes
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Wallingford, Oxford, UK
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Melanie Gibbs
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Wallingford, Oxford, UK
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Ashfaq M, Khan AM, Rasool A, Akhtar S, Nazir N, Ahmed N, Manzoor F, Sones J, Perez K, Sarwar G, Khan AA, Akhter M, Saeed S, Sultana R, Tahir HM, Rafi MA, Iftikhar R, Naseem MT, Masood M, Tufail M, Kumar S, Afzal S, McKeown J, Samejo AA, Khaliq I, D’Souza ML, Mansoor S, Hebert PDN. A DNA barcode survey of insect biodiversity in Pakistan. PeerJ 2022; 10:e13267. [PMID: 35497186 PMCID: PMC9048642 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2021] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Although Pakistan has rich biodiversity, many groups are poorly known, particularly insects. To address this gap, we employed DNA barcoding to survey its insect diversity. Specimens obtained through diverse collecting methods at 1,858 sites across Pakistan from 2010-2019 were examined for sequence variation in the 658 bp barcode region of the cytochrome c oxidase 1 (COI) gene. Sequences from nearly 49,000 specimens were assigned to 6,590 Barcode Index Numbers (BINs), a proxy for species, and most (88%) also possessed a representative image on the Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD). By coupling morphological inspections with barcode matches on BOLD, every BIN was assigned to an order (19) and most (99.8%) were placed to a family (362). However, just 40% of the BINs were assigned to a genus (1,375) and 21% to a species (1,364). Five orders (Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera) accounted for 92% of the specimens and BINs. More than half of the BINs (59%) are so far only known from Pakistan, but others have also been reported from Bangladesh (13%), India (12%), and China (8%). Representing the first DNA barcode survey of the insect fauna in any South Asian country, this study provides the foundation for a complete inventory of the insect fauna in Pakistan while also contributing to the global DNA barcode reference library.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Ashfaq
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics & Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
| | - Arif M. Khan
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan
| | - Akhtar Rasool
- Centre for Animal Sciences and Fisheries, University of Swat, Mingora, Pakistan
| | - Saleem Akhtar
- Directorate of Entomology, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Naila Nazir
- Department of Entomology, University of Poonch, Rawalakot, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan
| | - Nazeer Ahmed
- Faculty of Life Sciences and Informatics, Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences, Quetta, Pakistan
| | - Farkhanda Manzoor
- Department of Zoology, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Jayme Sones
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
| | - Kate Perez
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
| | - Ghulam Sarwar
- Institute of Zoology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Azhar A. Khan
- College of Agriculture, Bahauddin Zakariya University Bahadur Campus, Layyah, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Akhter
- Pulses Research Institute, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Shafqat Saeed
- Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, MNS University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan
| | - Riffat Sultana
- Department of Zoology, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, Pakistan
| | | | - Muhammad A. Rafi
- National Insect Museum, National Agricultural Research Center, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Romana Iftikhar
- Department of Plant Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States
| | | | - Mariyam Masood
- Government College Women University Faisalabad, Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | | | - Santosh Kumar
- Department of Zoology, Cholistan University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Bahawalpur, Pakistan
| | - Sabila Afzal
- Department of Zoology, University of Narowal, Narowal, Pakistan
| | - Jaclyn McKeown
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
| | | | | | | | - Shahid Mansoor
- National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Paul D. N. Hebert
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics & Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
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Scalercio S, Infusino M, Huemer P, Mutanen M. Pruning the Barcode Index Numbers tree: Morphological and genetic evidence clarifies species boundaries in the
Eupithecia conterminata
complex (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) in Europe. J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzs.12568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Scalercio
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'analisi dell'economia Agraria Centro di Ricerca Foreste e Legno Rende Italy
| | - Marco Infusino
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'analisi dell'economia Agraria Centro di Ricerca Foreste e Legno Rende Italy
| | - Peter Huemer
- Tiroler Landesmuseen Betriebsges.m.b.H. Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen Hall Austria
| | - Marko Mutanen
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit University of Oulu Oulu Finland
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Zangl L, Glatzhofer E, Schmid R, Randolf S, Koblmüller S. DNA barcoding of Austrian snow scorpionflies (Mecoptera, Boreidae) reveals potential cryptic diversity in Boreus westwoodi. PeerJ 2021; 9:e11424. [PMID: 34040896 PMCID: PMC8127955 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.11424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Accepted: 04/17/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Snow scorpionflies (genus Boreus) belong to a family of Mecoptera, Boreidae, that has been vastly neglected by entomological researchers due to their shift in seasonality to the winter months. Their activity during this time is regarded as a strategy for predator avoidance and regular sightings on snow fields suggest that this also facilitates dispersal. However, many aspects about snow scorpionflies, especially systematics, taxonomy, distribution of species, phylogenetics and phylogeography have remained fairly unexplored until today. In this study, we fill some of these gaps by generating a reference DNA barcode database for Austrian snow scorpionflies in the frame of the Austrian Barcode of Life initiative and by characterising morphological diversity in the study region. Methods Initial species assignment of all 67 specimens was based on male morphological characters previously reported to differ between Boreus species and, for females, the shape of the ovipositor. DNA barcoding of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene was carried out for all 67 samples and served as a basis for BIN assignment, genetic distance calculations, as well as alternative species delimitation analyses (ABGD, GMYC, bGMYC, bPTP) and a statistical parsimony network to infer phylogenetic relationships among individual samples/sampling sites. Results Morphological investigations suggested the presence of both Boreus hyemalis and Boreus westwoodi in Austria. DNA barcoding also separated the two species, but resulted in several divergent clades, the paraphyly of B. westwoodi in Austria, and high levels of phylogeographic structure on a small geographic scale. Even though the different molecular species delimitation methods disagreed on the exact number of species, they unequivocally suggested the presence of more than the traditionally recognized two Boreus species in Austria, thus indicating potential cryptic species within the genus Boreus in general and especially in B. westwoodi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Zangl
- Institute of Biology, University of Graz, Graz, Styria, Austria.,Universalmuseum Joanneum, Studienzentrum Naturkunde, Graz, Styria, Austria
| | | | - Raphael Schmid
- Institute of Biology, University of Graz, Graz, Styria, Austria
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Cryptic Diversity in the Monotypic Neotropical Micromoth Genus Angelabella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) in the Peru-Chile Desert. INSECTS 2020; 11:insects11100677. [PMID: 33036122 PMCID: PMC7601689 DOI: 10.3390/insects11100677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2020] [Revised: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary The Neotropical Region harbors a highly diverse and poorly known fauna of leaf miners of the micromoth family Gracillariidae (Lepidoptera). Angelabella is a genus of Gracillariidae whose geographic range is restricted to a few valleys of the arid environments of the Peru-Chile desert. Only one species is currently included in this genus. The aims of this study were to explore the geographic range, determine the spatial distribution of mitochondrial lineages, and test lineage conspecificity hypotheses in Angelabella. The spatial distribution of genetic diversity indicated four spatial clusters, three of which are north of the previously known geographic range. These groups were defined as different species by four species delimitation methods. These results suggest that Angelabella harbors at least four morphologically cryptic species with restricted, not overlapping geographic ranges. This study shows that adequate single locus sequence analysis can be useful to discover surprising biodiversity patterns in underexplored environments, providing the base to plan further studies involving little-known organisms. Abstract Angelabella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae: Oecophyllembiinae) is considered a monotypic Neotropical genus of leaf miner micromoths known only from a few valleys of the arid environments of the Peru-Chile desert, particularly the southernmost part of Peru and northernmost part of Chile (type locality), where natural populations of its primary host plant occur. The geographic distribution of potential host plants provides a scenario for a wider range for this micromoth genus. The aims of this study were to explore the geographic range of Angelabella, determine the spatial distribution of mitochondrial lineages, and test lineage conspecificity hypotheses. The spatial distribution of genetic diversity indicated the presence of four spatial clusters, three of which are north of the previously known geographic range. Genetic distances were 0.2–0.8% and 3.6–8.3% (K2P) between haplotypes of the same and different spatial clusters, respectively. Phylogenetic relationships indicated reciprocal monophyly among the four spatial clusters, suggesting that allopatric differentiation processes have governed the recent history of Angelabella in these arid environments. These groups were defined as different species by four species delimitation methods, suggesting that Angelabella is not a monotypic genus, but harbors at least four morphologically cryptic allopatric species with restricted geographic ranges, including the type species and three candidate species.
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Huemer P, Haxaire J, Lee KM, Mutanen M, Pekarsky O, Scalercio S, Ronkay L. Revision of the genus Hoplodrina Boursin, 1937 (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Xyleninae). I. Hoplodrina octogenaria (Goeze, 1781) and its sister species H. alsinides (Costantini, 1922) sp. rev. in Europe. Zookeys 2020; 927:75-97. [PMID: 32341676 PMCID: PMC7180165 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.927.51142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2020] [Accepted: 03/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The taxonomic status of the European Hoplodrinaoctogenaria (Goeze, 1781) is discussed and its partly sympatric sister species, Hoplodrinaalsinides (Costantini, 1922) sp. rev., is separated and re-described based on morphological and molecular taxonomic evidence. The adults and their genitalia are illustrated and DNA barcodes, as well as genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism data collected by fractional genome sequencing (ddRAD), of the two species are provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Huemer
- Tiroler Landesmuseen Betriebsges.m.b.H., Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen, Krajnc-Str. 1, A-6060 Hall, Austria Tiroler Landesmuseen Betriebsges.m.b.H. Innsbruck Austria
| | - Jean Haxaire
- Le Roc, 47310 LaPlume, France Unaffiliated LaPlume France
| | - Kyung Min Lee
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland University of Oulu Oulu Finland
| | - Marko Mutanen
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland University of Oulu Oulu Finland
| | - Oleg Pekarsky
- Felsőerdősor u. 16-18, H-1068, Budapest, Hungary Unaffiliated Budapest Hungary
| | - Stefano Scalercio
- Council for Agriculture Research and Economics, Research Centre for Forestry and Wood, Rende, Italy Council for Agriculture Research and Economics Rende Italy
| | - László Ronkay
- Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, Hungary Hungarian Natural History Museum Budapest Hungary
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Testing the Effectiveness of DNA Barcoding for Biodiversity Assessment of Moths from Nigeria. DIVERSITY-BASEL 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/d12020085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Comprehensive biodiversity assessment of moths in Nigeria rely greatly on accurate species identification. While most of the Nigerian moths are identified effortlessly using their morphological traits, some taxa are morphologically indistinguishable, which makes it difficult for taxon diagnosis. We investigated the efficiency of the DNA barcode, a fragment of the mitochondrial Cytochrome C oxidase subunit I, as a tool for the identification of Nigerian moths. We barcoded 152 individuals comprising 18 morphospecies collected from one of the remaining and threatened rainforest blocks of Nigeria – the Cross River National Park. Phenetic neighbor-joining tree and phylogenetic Maximum Likelihood approach were employed for the molecular-based species identification. Results showed that DNA barcodes enabled species-level identification of most of the individuals collected from the Park. Additionally, DNA barcoding unraveled the presence of at least six potential new and yet undescribed species—Amnemopsyche sp., Arctia sp., Deinypena sp., Hodebertia sp., Otroeda sp., and Palpita sp. The phylogenetic Maximum Likelihood using the combined dataset of all the newly assembled sequences from Nigeria showed that all species formed unique clades. The phylogenetic analyses provided evidence of population divergence in Euchromia lethe, Nyctemera leuconoe, and Deinypena lacista. This study thus illustrates the efficacy of DNA barcoding for species identification and discovery of potential new species, which demonstrates its relevance in biodiversity documentation of Nigerian moths. Future work should, therefore, extend to the creation of an exhaustive DNA barcode reference library comprising all species of moths from Nigeria to have a comprehensive insight on the diversity of moths in the country. Finally, we propose integrated taxonomic methods that would combine morphological, ecological, and molecular data in the identification and diversity studies of moths in Nigeria.
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