DNA barcoding of selected alpine beetles with focus on Curculionoidea (Coleoptera)

Abstract

Selected beetles, mainly weevils, from the Alpine Arc were barcoded. From 187 samples of 106 assigned species of the families Curculionidae (152 samples, mainly Entiminae, Cyclominae and Hyperinae), Carabidae (18), Apionidae (6), Chrysomelidae and Staphylinidae (each 1 sample), sequences from the COI (subunit 1 of the cytochrome oxydase gene) were obtained, with a success of more than 86% (162 samples). In the cases of Otiorhynchus pupillatus Gyllenhal, 1834, O. nodosus (O. F. Muller, 1764), O. meridionalis Gyllenhal, 1834, Dichotrachelus koziorowicziDesbrochers des Loges, 1873, D. augusti F. Solari, 1946 and D. maculosus Fairmaire, 1869 more diversity was hidden than foreseen in the beginning, suggesting partly cryptic (not yet described) species. One name is thus resurrected from junior synonymy (O. civisStierlin, 1861stat. rev. from synonymy with O. meridionalis). In another case with strictly parthenogenetically reproducing populations of O. pupillatus and O. nodosus in the Swiss Alps, several lineages from hypothetical postglacial immigration events, or alternatively complexes of species in statu nascendi might explain the results observed. Moreover, some morphologically debated species-pairs/triples confirmed to be problematic too, even with our COI sequence data [Hypera nigrirostris (Fabricius, 1775) – ononidis (Chevrolat, 1863) – melarynchus (Olivier, 1807)]. On the other hand, in some cases the lspecies' identity, based on the monophyly of the investigated populations, could be confirmed [Anthonomus rubi (Herbst, 1795), Polydrusus chaerodrysius Gredler, 1866, P. paradoxus Stierlin, 1859]. In the hyperdiverse genus Otiorhynchus Germar, 1822, some preliminary insights into the systematics at the subgenus-level could be made, suggesting that many changes of the present morphologically based systematic structure will be necessary.