Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Prosimulium Rachiliense Djafarov, 1954 (Diptera: Simuliidae) in Türkiye

Abstract

The family Simuliidae contains many cryptic species within multiple species groups. Prosimulium rachiliense Djafarov, a member of the P. hirtipes species group, is widespread throughout Anatolia. Previous chromosomal research revealed that populations of P. rachiliense in western Anatolia differ cytogenetically from populations in Armenia. We used mitochondrial COI and nuclear ITSI-II sequences to perform phylogenetic analysis and species delimitation tests to reveal the genetic diversity of P. rachiliense in Anatolia and to test the possibility of cryptic lineages. Our results indicated two distinct lineages, one in eastern and one in western Türkiye, with significant genetic diversity in both lineages. Although species delimitation tests with COI dataset suggested multiple candidate species, those with ITSI-II and phylogenetic analyses indicated that P. rachliense is a single species with great genetic diversity. Further analyses are needed using genome-wide SNP data with comprehensive sampling to understand deep population structure of P. rachiliense in Türkiye.

Keywords: Prosimulium rachiliense, COI, ITS I-II, population genetics, species delimitation, phylogeny, Anatolia