Complete DNA barcode reference library for a country's butterfly fauna reveals high performance for temperate Europe

Abstract

DNA barcoding aims to accelerate species identification and discovery, but performance tests have shown marked differences in identification success. As a consequence, there remains a great need for comprehensive studies which objectively test the method in groups with a solid taxonomic framework. This study focuses on the 180 species of butterflies in Romania, accounting for about one third of the European butterfly fauna. This country includes five eco-regions, the highest of any in the European Union, and is a good representative for temperate areas. Morphology and DNA barcodes of more than 1300 specimens were carefully studied and compared. Our results indicate that 90 per cent of the species form barcode clusters allowing their reliable identification. The remaining cases involve nine closely related species pairs, some whose taxonomic status is controversial or that hybridize regularly. Interestingly, DNA barcoding was found to be the most effective identification tool, outperforming external morphology, and being slightly better than male genitalia. Romania is now the first country to have a comprehensive DNA barcode reference database for butterflies. Similar barcoding efforts based on comprehensive sampling of specific geographical regions can act as functional modules that will foster the early application of DNA barcoding while a global system is under development.

Divergent patterns in the mitochondrial and nuclear diversity of the specialized butterfly Plebejus argus (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)

“…The population structure in contrasting landscapes in Finland and Spain have been compared using these markers (Péténian & Nève, 2003). Most other analyses involving P. argus have used mitochondrial DNA, particularly the cytochrome oxidase subunit I gene (COI) (Gompert et al, 2008;Wiemers & Fiedler, 2007;Vila & Bjorklund, 2004;Lukhtanov et al, 2009;Dinca et al, 2011). However, none of these studies focused on P. argus and therefore there are only sequences for a very small number of specimens from very different parts of the range.…”

New contributions to the butterfly fauna of Mt Velebit and the neighbouring area of Lika (Croatia)

“…Nevertheless the number of species on the list will probably be higher after additional analysis of voucher specimens in collections. the first candidate is one species from the morphologically indistinguishable pair Colias hyale and C. alfacariensis (Dinca et al, 2011). Grund (1916) noted only C. hyale for Mt Velebit, but Koren et al (2011) cited both taxa for the southern slopes of the south-eastern part of Mt Velebit.…”

DNA barcoding in floral and faunal research

“…In addition to the changes in work flow there have been significant impacts, from finding cryptic species to matching dimorphic males and females, which have substantially improved the quality and depth of the inventory, but also greatly multiplied the number of situations requiring further taxonomic work for resolution. Although the workflow issues differ between different habitats and taxa, other studies have demonstrated the use of barcoding in inventories of diverse taxa, including poorly known freshwater invertebrates (Zhou et al, 2009;Laforest et al, 2013), tropical sand flies (Azpurua et al, 2010;Krüger et al, 2011), bats in Southeast Asia (Francis et al, 2010), difficult to distinguish agricultural pest moths (Roe et al, 2006), pollinating insects in Africa (Nzeduru et al, 2012), diverse radiations of tropical weevils (Pinzón-Navarro et al, 2010a, 2010bTänzler et al, 2012), freshwater fishes in Africa (Swartz et al, 2008;Lowenstein et al, 2011), butterflies at country scales (Dinca et al, 2011;Hausmann et al, 2011), amphibians in Panama (Crawford et al, 2010) and trees in forest plots (Kress et al, 2009(Kress et al, , 2010Costion et al, 2011). Perhaps even greater opportunities for improving the speed and quality of inventories exist in the marine realm, where poorly known larval stages exist in vast quantities, and species concepts must be compared across vast oceanic distances (Goetze, 2010;Heimeier et al, 2010;Hubert et al, 2010;Stern et al, 2010;Plaisance et al, 2011;Ranasinghe et al, 2012).…”