Species delimitation of the Dermacentor ticks based on phylogenetic clustering and niche modeling

作者

Wang, Fang; Wang, Duo; Guo, Ge; 更多内容

期刊:PEERJ ISSN:2167-8359 , 年:2019 . 卷:7

语种: English

原文链接:http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6911

摘要

Three species belonging to the genus Dermacentor (Acari: Ixodidae), D. marginatus, D. nuttalli and D. silvarum are well known as vectors for a great variety of infection pathogens. All three of them are host ticks, which are very similar in morphology characteristics, life cycle, seasonal variation and ecological conditions, making it difficult to distinguish the three species. In the present study, these three species were delimitated based on molecular data and ecological niche. The molecular analysis showed that the three species can be distinguished by COI and ITS2 sequences. We created future potential distribution maps for the three species under climate changes with MaxEnt, which highlighted the different levels of the suitable habitats for each tick species. In addition, niche comparisons among the three species in Dermacentor were conducted, and the analysis suggested that niche overlap was relatively high with D. nuttalli and D. silvarum compared to the other species pairs, which was consistent with the molecular data. Niche equivalency and similarity test confirmed that these Dermacentor species were closely related but distinct species. In conclusion, delimitation of these three species within Dermacentor was supported by molecular phylogeny and quantitative ecological space. This study will provide deep insights into the biology, ecology, and diversification processes within Dermacentor species, and for the development of effective control for ticks.

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关键词
Dermacentor ticks; DNA barcoding; Climate niche; Niche overlap; Niche comparisons

附加关键词:
CLIMATE-CHANGE; ACARI IXODIDAE; CONSERVATISM; COMPLEXITY; MARGINATUS; IDENTIFICATION; RETICULATUS; SILVARUM; ECOLOGY; BIAS

作者信息

通讯作者:
     Liu, JZ , Hebei Normal Univ, Coll Life Sci, Hebei Key Lab Anim Physiol Biochem & Mol Biol, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, Peoples R China.; Wei, JF , Shanxi Agr Univ, Coll Agr, Taigu, Shanxi, Peoples R China.
作者机构:
     [1] [ Wang, Fang; Wang, Duo; Guo, Ge; Hu, Yonghong; ︾ ] Hebei Normal Univ, Coll Life Sci, Hebei Key Lab Anim Physiol Biochem & Mol Biol, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, Peoples R China.
     [2] [ Wei, Jiufeng ] Shanxi Agr Univ, Coll Agr, Taigu, Shanxi, Peoples R China.
作者邮箱:
     weijiufeng@gmail.com
     liujingze@hebtu.edu.cn