Abstract
There are important but inconsistent differences in breeding site preference between the blow flies Lucilia sericata (Mei- gen, 1826) and L. cuprina (Wiedemann, 1830) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) that have significance for medical and veterinary science. These inconsistencies might arise from hybridisation. The species are difficult to distinguish using external morphology, although the male genitalia are distinctive and there are reliable molecular markers. Molecular evidence of modern hybridisation, derived from a newly developed nuclear marker, the period (per) gene, is presented here. This has implications for identifications of these species based on mtDNA, and may lead to an explanation of the medical and veterinary anomalies noted in these species.
Highlights
The use of Lucilia blowflies for maggot debridement therapy (MDT) has become a topic of great interest in South Africa
A number of studies have been conducted on L. sericata and L. cuprina, looking at morphological identification, the possibility that they are interbreeding and whether L. cuprina should be classified as two subspecies or two independent species (Ullyett, 1945; Waterhouse & Paramonov, 1950; Norris, 1990; Holloway, 1991a, b; Stevens & Wall, 1996; Stevens et al, 2002; Stevens, 2003; Wallman et al, 2005; Wells et al, 2007; Harvey et al, 2008; Tourle et al, 2009; DeBry et al, 2010)
This study focuses on these two species in South Africa, and examines specimens from across the globe to place the South African situation into a global context
Summary
The use of Lucilia blowflies for maggot debridement therapy (MDT) has become a topic of great interest in South Africa Different populations of L. sericata show different degrees of cuprina-like attraction to sheep (Crombe, 1944; Cragg, 1956), but no clear pattern in this myiasis has been noted. These two species have been suspected of interbreeding and producing fertile hybrids in South Africa (Ullyett, 1945). Lucilia cuprina has consistently been found to be paraphyletic relative to L. sericata in studies of several mitochondrial genes (Table 1). If they are interbreeding, this leads to an explanation of the medical and veterinary anomalies noted in the biology of these species
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