DNA barcode assessment and population structure of aphidophagous hoverfly : Implications for conservation biological control.

With the advent of integrated pest management, the conservation of indigenous populations of natural enemies of pest species has become a relevant practice, necessitating the accurate identification of beneficial species and the inspection of evolutionary mechanisms affecting the long-time persistence of their populations. The long hoverfly, , represents one of the most potent aphidophagous control agents due to a worldwide distribution and a favorable constellation of biological traits. Therefore, we assessed five European populations by combining molecular (cytochrome oxidase subunit I- , internal transcribed spacer 2- , and allozyme loci) and morphological (wing size and shape) characters. sequences retrieved in this study were conjointly analyzed with BOLD/GenBank sequences of the other species to evaluate whether possessed a sufficient diagnostic value as a DNA barcode marker to consistently delimit allospecific individuals. Additionally, the aforementioned characters were used to inspect the population structure of in Europe using methods based on individual- and population-based genetic differences, as well as geometric morphometrics of wing traits. The results indicate numerous shared haplotypes among different species, thus disqualifying this marker from being an adequate barcoding region in this genus. Conversely, the analyses of population structuring revealed high population connectivity across Europe, therefore indicating strong tolerance of to environmental heterogeneity. The results imply a multilocus approach as the next step in molecular identification of different species, while confirming the status of as a powerful biocontrol agent of economically relevant aphid pests.