Taxonomic Status of the Bemisia tabaci Complex (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) and Reassessment of the Number of Its Constituent Species

Abstract

Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is one of the most important insect pests in the world. In the present study, the taxonomic status of B. tabaci and the number of species composing the B. tabaci complex were determined based on 1059 COI sequences of B. tabaci and 509 COI sequences of 153 hemipteran species. The genetic divergence within B. tabaci was conspicuously higher (on average, 11.1%) than interspecific genetic divergence within the respective genera of the 153 species (on average, 6.5%). This result indicates that B. tabaci is composed of multiple species that may belong to different genera or subfamilies. A phylogenetic tree constructed based on 212 COI sequences without duplications revealed that the B. tabaci complex is composed of a total of 31 putative species, including a new species, JpL. However, genetic divergence within six species (Asia II 1, Asia II 7, Australia, Mediterranean, New World, and Sub Saharan Africa 1) was higher than 3.5%, which has been used as a threshold of species boundaries within the B. tabaci complex. These results suggest that it is necessary to increase the threshold for species boundaries up to 4% to distinguish the constituent species in the B. tabaci complex.

Plantas hospedantes de Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemíptera: Aleyrodidae), en áreas colindantes al cultivo de tomate, en la región este de Panamá

“…Aproximadamente, más de 600 especies pertenecientes a 74 familias de plantas, en agroecosistemas tropicales y subtropicales, presentan las diferentes fases de desarrollo de B. tabaci (Naik et al, 2003;Cuéllar y Morales, 2006). La capacidad de adaptación del grupo Medio Oriente-Asia Menor 1 (Middle East Asia Minor 1, MEAM1, anteriormente referida como biotipo B) de B. tabaci (De Barro et al, 2011;Lee et al, 2013) a este elevado número de especies vegetales, dificulta su manejo (Morales, 2006). Esta condición biológica favorece la diseminación de begomovirus, aunado a la capacidad del vector del grupo MEAM1 (Cuéllar y Morales, 2006).…”

“…Esta condición biológica favorece la diseminación de begomovirus, aunado a la capacidad del vector del grupo MEAM1 (Cuéllar y Morales, 2006). En Panamá, la predominancia de este grupo de B. tabaci y el desplazamiento del grupo del Nuevo Mundo (New World, NW, anteriormente referido como biotipo A) por el grupo MEAM1 (De Barro et al, 2011;Lee et al, 2013), es consecuencia de un proceso natural confirmado en otras regiones hortícolas de América Latina (Morales, 2006;Cuéllar y Morales, 2006). El daño directo causado por B. tabaci provoca desórdenes fisiológicos en la planta, entre estos la madurez irregular del fruto en el cultivo del tomate (Cuéllar y Morales, 2006).…”

Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis of endosymbiont genera reveals novel infection patterns in a tomato-infesting Bemisia tabaci population from Brazil

“…Currently, B. tabaci is recognized as a genetically diverse complex ofdistinct cryptic species (De . Studies based upon the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene sequence phylogeny Section Editor: F. Murilo Zerbini indicated the worldwide occurrence ofat least 31cryptic species in 11 high-level genetic groups (Dinsdale et al 2010;Lee et al 2013). The cosmopolitan B. tabaci species from Middle EastAsia Minor 1 (MEAM 1) is a major pest and an important vector of viruses in many tropical and subtropical areas (De Navas-Castillo et al 2011).…”

First report of the Sub-Saharan Africa 2 species of the Bemisia tabaci complex in the Southern France

“…The whitefly B. tabaci is a complex of at least 34 morphocryptic entities that have been termed both lineages and species (Brown et al 1995;Alemandri et al 2012;Liu et al 2012;Lee et al 2013); that represents some of the most destructive and invasive pests of vegetable, ornamental and field crops worldwide. Regardless of whether the named entities are populations, lineages, or species, they represent genetic and phenotypic units worthy of distinction from one another; traditional species descriptions have not been undertaken.…”