A Mysterious Asian Firefly Genus, Jeng, Engel & Yang (Coleoptera, Lampyridae): The First Complete Mitochondrial Genome and Its Phylogenetic Implications.

The firefly genus Jeng, Engel & Yang, 2007 is a rare-species group endemic to Asia. Since its establishment, its position has been controversial but never rigorously tested. To address this perplexing issue, we are the first to present the complete mitochondrial sequence of , using the material of Yiu & Jeng, 2018 determined through a comprehensive morphological identification. Our analyses demonstrate that its mitogenome exhibits similar characteristics to that of , including a rearranged gene order between and , and a long intergenic spacer (702 bp) between the two rearranged genes, within which six remnants (29 bp) of were identified. Further, we incorporated this sequence into phylogenetic analyses of Lampyridae based on different molecular markers and datasets using ML and BI analyses. The results consistently place within the same clade as in all topologies, and the gene rearrangement is a synapomorphy for this clade. It suggests that should be classified together with in the subfamily Ototretinae at the moment. This study provides molecular evidence confirming the close relationship between and and discovers a new phylogenetic marker helpful in clarifying the monophyly of Ototretinae, which also sheds a new light on firefly evolution.