Mitogenomics of the Olive Seed Weevil, Anchonocranus oleae Marshall and Implications for Its Phylogenetic Position in Curculionidae

Abstract

Anchonocranus oleae Marshall (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is a seed-feeding weevil native to southern Africa; its larvae are known to develop in the fruits of the African Wild Olive and, more rarely, cultivated olives. The species has been mainly found in the Western Cape province of South Africa, but it has remained in relative obscurity because it does not seem to represent a current threat to commercial olive production. As part of an ongoing effort to produce baseline genetic data for olive-associated entomofauna in South Africa, we generated reference DNA barcodes for A. oleae collected from wild and cultivated olives and sequenced its mitogenome for assessment of the phylogenetic position of the species in the family Curculionidae. The mitochondrial phylogeny estimate indicated that A. oleae shares a common ancestor with Elaidobius (tribe Derelomini), but a definite and close relationship to this tribe and the precise tribal placement of A. oleae in the subfamily Curculioninae could not be inferred due to the lack of representative mitogenomes of other relevant curculionine tribes and genera. This study will assist future work on the DNA-based species identification, genetic diversity, and phylogenetic position of the genus Anchonocranus and related taxa.

Genetic characterization of 2 Ceutorhynchus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) weevils with mitogenomes and insights into the phylogeny and evolution of related weevils

“…However, the majority of our analyses with different data matrices and models support that Scolytinae is a monophyletic group and its sister-group relationships with the remaining CCCMS clades in Curculionidae. Our analyses also clearly show that Cyclominae, Entiminae, Gonipterini, and Hyperinae form a distinct clade and that Curculioninae, Conoderinae, Cossoninae, Molytinae, and Scolytinae coalesce into another clade, thus supporting 2 monophyletic groups (i.e., CEGH and CCCMS) as previously reported ( Gillett et al 2014 , Gunter et al 2016 , Smit et al 2022 ). K a / K s ratios ( ω ) can serve as an indicator of purifying, neutral or positive selection in PCGs ( McFerrin and Stone, 2011 ).…”

“…The classification scheme of the family Curculionidae has been unstable, and no consistent results have been achieved by any scheme ( Gunter et al 2016 , Song et al 2020 , Smit et al 2022 ). However, the majority of our analyses with different data matrices and models support that Scolytinae is a monophyletic group and its sister-group relationships with the remaining CCCMS clades in Curculionidae.…”

“…Subsequently, this superfamily was expanded by Oberprieler et al (2007) and Shin et al (2018) to comprise 8 families (adding Caridae and Cimberididae), and a ninth, extinct family, Mesophyletidae, was recently recognized by Clarke et al (2018) . Although the monophyletic status of each of these families is well supported, the phylogenetic relationships among subfamilies of Curculionidae remain uncertain ( Marvaldi et al 2002 , Gunter et al 2016 , Clarke et al 2018 , Shin et al 2018 , Song et al 2020 , Smit et al 2022 , Haran et al 2023 , Hsiao et al 2023 ).…”

Argopistes sexvittatus and Argopistes capensis (Chrysomelidae: Alticini): Mitogenomics and Phylogeny of Two Flea Beetles Affecting Olive Trees

“…We have faced similar difficulties in determining the phylogenetic position of other African insects associated with O. europaea due to the paucity of mitogenomic data for closely related taxa. For example, the olive seed weevil Anchonocranus oleae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) remains incertae sedis due to a lack of adequate taxonomic context [ 44 ]. Similarly, our study of the African olive lace bugs Neoplerochila paliatseasi , Plerochila australis and Cysteochila lineata (Hemiptera: Tingidae: Tingini) also had to rely on the presently limited taxonomic coverage of Tingini [ 45 , 46 ].…”

Wild olive seed weevil, Anchonocranus oleae Marshall (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), in cultivated olives in South Africa

“…europaea) (Neuenschwander 1982;Mkize et al 2008). However, according to Smit et al (2022), collection records and specimens curated in the Iziko Museum in Cape Town, the University of Naples in Portici, Italy, and the South African National Collection of Insects in Pretoria confirm that A. oleae is widespread in wild olives in South Africa. Caleca et al (2019) identified A. oleae in wild olives from various localities in the Western Cape province and reported on laboratory observations showing that A. oleae adults readily fed on wild olive pulp but refused to feed on cultivated olives.…”