Abstract
The autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) is a cyclically outbreaking forest Lepidoptera with circumpolar distribution and substantial impact on Northern ecosystems. We have isolated 21 microsatellites from the species to facilitate population genetic studies of population cycles, outbreaks, and crashes. First, PCR primers and PCR conditions were developed to amplify 19 trinucleotide loci and two tetranucleotide loci in six multiplex PCR approaches and then analyzed for species specificity, sensitivity and precision. Twelve of the loci showed simple tandem repeat array structures while nine loci showed imperfect repeat structures, and repeat numbers varied in our material between six and 15. The application in population genetics for all the 21 microsatellites were further validated in 48 autumnal moths sampled from Northern Norway, and allelic variation was detected in 19 loci. The detected numbers of alleles per locus ranged from two to 13, and the observed and expected heterozygosities varied from 0.04 to 0.69 and 0.04 to 0.79, respectively. Evidence for linkage disequilibrium was found for six loci as well as indication of one null allele. We find that these novel microsatellites and their multiplex-PCR assays are suitable for further research on fine- and large-scale population-genetic studies of Epirrita autumnata.
Highlights
The autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) is a forest pest insect with cyclic outbreak dynamics, widespread across the northern hemisphere
These geometrid moth species are a model system in population ecology, which is partly due to the pronounced spatial population synchrony and decadal population cycles [7,8,9], and due to the rapid outbreak range shifts shown by these three species during recent decades due to climate warming [10,11,12]
With the species specificity test we tested for cross-amplification with the two sympatric outbreak species winter moth and scarce umber moth, as a common set of microsatellites for all three species would greatly facilitate comparative population genetic studies of population cycles, outbreaks, crashes and climate driven range shifts
Summary
The autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) is a forest pest insect with cyclic outbreak dynamics, widespread across the northern hemisphere. In the northern-boreal birch forests of Fennoscandia, outbreaks by autumnal moth and other defoliating geometrid moths, in particular winter moth (Operopthera brumata) but locally the ecologically similar and recently established scarce umber moth (Agriopis aurantiaria), may have severe and large-scale impacts on both tree and understory layers [1,2,3,4]. This includes local or regional defoliation of mountain birch With the species specificity test we tested for cross-amplification with the two sympatric outbreak species winter moth and scarce umber moth, as a common set of microsatellites for all three species would greatly facilitate comparative population genetic studies of population cycles, outbreaks, crashes and climate driven range shifts
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