Integrative systematics of Cheguevaria Kazantsev, 2007 (Coleoptera, Lampyridae, Cheguevariinae) identifies genetic stability in color-polymorphic individuals and a disjoint relationship with Amydetinae

Abstract

The genus Cheguevaria (Kazantsev 2007) is currently comprised of three species which are endemic to the Greater Antilles: Cheguevaria angusta Kazantsev, 2007 (Hispaniola), Cheguevaria taino Kazantsev, 2007 and Cheguevaria montana Kazantsev, 2008 (both from Puerto Rico). Cheguevaria is the sole member of Cheguevariinae, and a previous morphology-based phylogenetic hypotheses suggested a close relationship with the subfamily Amydetinae. Recent collecting trips to Puerto Rico and the survey of other scientific collections allowed us to identify and locate more specimens of the genus, including several color morphs of specimens tentatively identified as C. montana. We used this material to revise the genus, and to describe Cheguevaria cubensisnew species, the first record of the genus from Cuba. We also produced DNA barcodes based on partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI), which were used to investigate the species limits within color morph species of C. montana. Our results showed a high level of genetic stability in those color morphs, indicating that all specimens belong to the same species. We present a discussion to explain possible scenarios leading to such variation in color patterns. We also generated amplicons for two specimens of Amydetinae, represented by two Amydetes Illiger, 1807 species, and we tested their relationship with Cheguevaria in a phylogenetic context based on a four gene dataset. Our analyzes indicated a disjoint relationship between Cheguevaria and Amydetes, corroborating previously published morphology-based phylogenies, and we maintained the status of Cheguevaria as an independent lineage within Lampyridae.