“Cytochrome c oxidase I DNA sequence of Camponotus ants with different nesting strategies is a tool for distinguishing between morphologically similar species”

Abstract

The great diversity of Camponotus, high levels of geographic, intraspecific and morphological variation common to most species of this genus make the determination of the interspecific limits of Camponotus a complex task. The Cytochrome c oxidase 1 (COI) gene was sequenced in this study to serve as an auxiliary tool in the identification of two taxa of Camponotus thought to be morphologically similar. Additionally, characteristics related to nesting were described. Five to fifteen workers from twenty-one colonies were analyzed, collected from twigs scattered in the leaf litter and from trees located in different regions of Brazil. Phylogenetic reconstructions, haplotype network, and nesting strategies confirmed the existence of two species and that they correspond to Camponotus senex and Camponotus textor. Our results emphasize that the COI can be used as an additional tool for the identification of morphologically similar Camponotus species.

Intracellular Symbiotic Bacteria of Camponotus textor, Forel (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

“…C. textor is often mistaken for C. senex (Smith) due to their morphological similarities. Recently, however, Ramalho et al [21] distinguished the two species based on molecular data and ecological traits of specimens of both species collected in the Neotropics. Their results corroborate with Longino [22], who considers them as two separate species.…”

Weaving through a cryptic species: Comparing the Neotropical ants Camponotus senex and Camponotus textor (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

“…9 are not directly sister species, the obtained KP2 diverge estimates suggest C. senex and C. textor are not closely related as the result of a recent speciation event, which is consistent with the observed differences in behaviour and CHCs. The considerable distance between these species was recently estimated in an independent investigation by Ramalho et al (2016a). We have also built a tree incorporating the sequences deposited by Ramalho et al (2016a), but found limited compatibility with our primer results as the overlap was much shorter (see supplementary S1).…”

“…Only further sampling efforts of more closely related taxa can add resolution enabling to determine how close these species in fact are. A separate tree was generated including the sequences of Ramalho et al (2016a) but is herein provided in S1 as the sequence comparison range was much shorter (ca. 45% of usable overlap) because of different primers, thus generating herein a less stable phylogeny.…”

“…Smith, 1858) until being validated as a separate species based on behavioural, biological, and morphological grounds (Longino, 2006). A recent study by Ramalho et al (2016a) quantified the divergence of a mitochondrial gene (COI) between these two species, while remarking of the extreme differences in their nests' construction and physical location, and proposed using COI as a molecular technique to distinguish between the two species. It is a remarkable fact that so similar sympatric species will in fact behave so differently, illustrating the issue of sibling species in ants.…”

Mind the gap! Integrating taxonomic approaches to assess ant diversity at the southern extreme of the Atlantic Forest

“…Moreover, when coupled with different clustering algorithms, DNA barcodes can be used to delimit Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units (MOTUs): clusters of sequences grouped together based on similarity (Floyd, Abebe, Papert, & Blaxter, 2002). These MOTUs can then be used to accelerate specimen identification, unveil cryptic diversity, test species delimitation hypothesis (e.g., Ramalho, Santos, Fernandes, Morini, & Bueno, 2016), or to perform fast census of animal diversity that could serve as the basis for subsequent taxonomic work (e.g., Smith, Hallwachs, Janzen, & Longino, 2014).…”