A review of the subfamily Charipinae (Hymenoptera: Cynipoidea: Figitidae), hyperparasitoids potentially affecting the biological control of aphids

Abstract

Charipinae is an important subfamily of aphid hyperparasitoids. As aphids are some of the most significant pests in the world, studying the insect community associated with them is of crucial importance. Here, we review the biological information available on Charipinae. The information has been grouped into different sections: (a) historical background ; (b) morphological and ecological features ; (c) phylogenetic relationships ; (d) overview of aphid biology and biological control ; (e) evolutionary history ; and (f) future perspectives. After this review, it is evident that there are still some aspects of charipine taxonomy and biology that remain elusive: (a) reliability and improvement of host associations ; (b) validity of the brachypterous species ; (c) problems related with the paraphyly of the genus Phaenoglyphis ; (d) taxonomic improvement of these morphologically difficult species by the combination of molecular and morphological data ; and (e) phylogeny. Additionally, important information on morphological variations among taxa and the synapomorphies of the valid genera are given for the first time. Finally, we premiere the Interactive Charipinae worldwide database and highlight the importance of this tool for the scientific community in terms of interactive determination keys for agronomists, ecologists, taxonomists, and evolutionary biologists. Résumé. Une revue de la sous-famille des Charipinae (Hymenoptera : Cynipoidea : Figitidae), hyperparasitoïdes affectant potentiellement la lutte biologique contre les pucerons. Les Charipinae sont une importante sous-famille d'hyménoptères hyperparasitoïdes de pucerons. Leurs hôtes étant des ravageurs majeurs des cultures dans le monde, il est important de mieux connaître leurs ennemis naturels. Nous avons compilé ici toutes les informations disponibles sur cette sous-famille en les regroupant dans différentes sections : (a) contexte historique ; (b) caractéristiques morphologiques et écologiques ; (c) relations phylogénétiques ; (d) aperçu de la biologie des pucerons et de la lutte biologique ; (e) histoire évolutive ; et (f) futures perspectives. Cette révision montre que beaucoup d'aspects de la taxonomie et de l'écologie des Charipinae doivent être approfondis, comme : (a) la fiabilité et l'étendue des associations hôtesparasitoïdes ; (b) la validité des espèces brachyptères ; (c) les problèmes relatifs à la paraphylie du genre Phaenoglyphis ; (d) l'amélioration de la taxonomie de ces espèces difíciles à distinguer morphologiquement par la combinaison de données morphologiques et moléculaires ; et (e) la phylogénie des Charipinae. De plus, des informations importantes sur les variations morphologiques entre taxons et les synapomorphies des genres valides sont données pour la première fois. Enfin, nous présentons la base de données interactive mondiale sur les Charipinae et rappelons l'importance pour la communauté scientifique de cet outil qui fournit des clés de détermination interactives utiles aux agronomes, écologistes, phylogénéticiens et biologistes...

Molecular Data Confirm Interspecific Limits of Four Alloxysta and One Phaenoglyphis Species of Parasitic Wasps within the Subfamily Charipinae (Cynipoidea: Figitidae)

“…It is worth highlighting the fact that P. villosa being nested within Alloxysta is an unexpected result. Phaenoglyphis villosa belongs in a different genus, based on morphological differences [32]. The Bayesian tree resulting from the concatenated sequences 1471 bp long with gaps coded as separate partitions uncovered the same relationships between the five species as the tree built with gaps not coded, albeit with lower posterior probability support (Figure 6B).…”

“…The majority of previous studies have focused on establishing species limits of charipines using DNA barcoding [30,31]. Alloxysta (Figitidae, Charipinae) is the most abundant and widely distributed genus within the subfamily and found on every continent, except for Antarctica [32]. There are few diagnostic features that allow species delimitation within Alloxysta, and even those available can be very difficult to recognize for the non-expert.…”

Characterising the north-western European species of Phaenoglyphis Förster, 1869 (Hymenoptera: Figitidae: Charipinae) with novel insights from DNA barcode data

“…Re-descriptions and a key for all Palaearctic species of Phaenoglyphis were published in Ferrer-Suay et al (2018) . In Ferrer-Suay et al (2021) , the status of this genus was revised and more recently, in Ferrer-Suay et al (2023) , data on its diversity and distribution patterns were published. The latest phylogenetic study of Charipinae , which was based on morphological characters alone, inferred Phaenoglyphis as a basal, but paraphyletic genus ( Paretas-Martínez et al 2007 ).…”

Four new species of Alloxysta (Hym.: Cynipoidea: Figitidae: Charipinae) from Petr Starý’s collection

“…The Aphidiinae is a group of parasitoid wasps of aphids with great potential for use in the biological control of these important pests (Petrović 2022). Thanks to his work, including countless field collections, he managed to form a large collection of Charipinae Dalla Torre & Kieffer, 1910 (Hymenoptera: Figitidae), which are hyperparasitoids of aphids via Aphidiinae, their true hosts within aphids (Ferrer-Suay et al 2012a, 2019, 2021.…”

“…This information was very useful to complete the host list of Charipinae and move forward to future specialization studies based on this subfamily (Ferrer-Suay et al 2014). A review of Charipinae with all the relevant information about this subfamily was recently published by Ferrer-Suay et al (2021).…”