Carolina Dale

Rhodnius barretti, a new species of Triatominae (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) from western Amazonia

Rhodnius barretti , a new triatomine species, is described based on adult specimens collected in rainforest environments within the Napo ecoregion of western Amazonia (Colombia and Ecuador). R. barretti resembles Rhodnius robustus s.l. , but mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequences reveal that it is a strongly divergent member of the “robustus lineage”, i.e., basal to the clade encompassing Rhodnius nasutus , Rhodnius neglectus , Rhodnius prolixus and five members of the R. robustus species complex. Morphometric analyses also reveal consistent divergence from R. robustus s.l. , including head and, as previously shown, wing shape and the length ratios of some anatomical structures. R. barretti occurs, often at high densities, in Attalea butyracea and Oenocarpus bataua palms. It is strikingly aggressive and adults may invade houses flying from peridomestic palms. R. barretti must therefore be regarded as a potential Trypanosoma cruzi vector in the Napo ecoregion, where Chagas disease is endemic.

DNA barcoding does not separate South American Triatoma (Hemiptera: Reduviidae), Chagas Disease vectors

BackgroundDNA barcoding assumes that a biological entity is completely separated from its closest relatives by a barcoding gap, which means that intraspecific genetic distance (from COI sequences) should never be greater than interspecific distances. We investigated the applicability of this strategy in identifying species of the genus Triatoma from South America.FindingsWe calculated intra and interspecific Kimura-2-parameter distances between species from the infestans, matogrossensis, sordida and rubrovaria subcomplexes. In every subcomplex examined we observed at least one intraspecific distance greater than interspecific distances.ConclusionsAlthough DNA barcoding is a straightforward approach, it was not applicable for identifying Southern American Triatoma species, which may have diverged recently. Thus, caution should be taken in identifying vector species using this approach, especially in groups where accurate identification of taxa is fundamentally linked to public health issues.

Description of Triatoma mopan sp. n. from a cave in Belize (Hemiptera, Reduviidae, Triatominae)

Abstract In this paper, Triatoma mopan sp. n. is described based on five males and six females collected in the Rio Frio cave, Cayo District, Belize. This species is similar to Triatoma dimidiata (Latreille), but can be distinguished by characters found on the pronotum, legs, and abdomen. Geometric morphometry and phylogenetic comparisons are also provided. Presently, the species is known only from the type locality and is a potential Chagas vector.