IS THE GLASSY-WINGED SHARPSHOOTER PARASITOID GONATOCERUS MORRILLI ONE SPECIES

• Author(s): Hoddle, Mark; Stouthamer, R; Triapitsyn, Serguei;
• Abstract: This is a new proposal that was officially funded in July 2004. This project objective is to determine the status of different Gonatocerus morrilli populations. We intend to use three approaches to determine the species identity of different G. morrilli populations: (1) Reassessment of key morphological features using scanning electron microscopy to determine if subtle morphological differences exist between G. morrilli populations which could possibly indicate species differences (Triapitsyn to conduct this work). (2) Conduct mating compatibility studies to determine if different populations of G. morrilli are reproductively isolated, or if mating occurs, whether offspring are viable thereby defining species groups on the basis of successful interbreeding (Hoddle). (3) To determine if molecular differences exist between G. morrilli populations collected from different regions by comparing mitochondrial and ribosomal DNA sequences. Molecular dissimilarities of key regions could potentially indicate the existence of different species (Stouthamer). Results from these three areas (morphology, behavior, and molecular) of investigation will be evaluated together to determine whether G. morrilli as it is currently viewed is a valid species or whether it is an aggregate of morphologically similar cryptic species.
• Publication Date: Dec 2004
• Journal: 2004 Pierce's Disease Research Symposium