| Title: | Reproductive Isolation in the Cryptic Species Complex of a Key Pest: Analysis of Mating and Rejection Behaviour of Onion Thrips (Thrips tabaci Lindeman) |
| Author(s): | Kiraly KD; Ladanyi M; Fail J; |
| Address: | "Institute of Plant Protection, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (MATE), 44 Menesi ut, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary. Institute of Mathematics and Basic Science, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (MATE), 29-43 Villanyi ut, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 2079-7737 (Print) 2079-7737 (Electronic) 2079-7737 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Thrips tabaci Lindeman is a serious pest of various cultivated plants, with three, distinct lineages within a cryptic species complex. Despite the well-known significance of this pest, many attributes of these lineages are not yet fully understood, including their reproductive behaviour. We performed no-choice-design cross-mating experiments under a controlled laboratory environment with virgin adult individuals from all three lineages. The behaviour of thrips was recorded with a camera mounted on a stereomicroscope, and the recordings were analysed in detail. We found that the so-called leek-associated lineages of this cryptic species complex are reproductively isolated from the tobacco-associated lineage; therefore, they represent different species. Divergence in the behaviour of conspecific and heterospecific pairs became evident only after contact. There were no marked differences between the lineages in their precopulatory and copulatory behaviour, except in the duration of the latter. We confirmed mating between thelytokous females and arrhenotokous males; however, we assume some form of loss of function in the sexual traits of asexual females. The post-mating behaviour of males indicated the presence and role of an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone. We also demonstrated differences between lineages regarding their activity and their propensity for exhibiting an escape response upon interaction with heterospecific thrips" |
| Keywords: | activity arrhenotoky lineages mate recognition pheromone speciation thelytoky; |
| Notes: | "PubMed-not-MEDLINEKiraly, Kristof Domonkos Ladanyi, Marta Fail, Jozsef eng K 109594/Hungarian Scientific Research Fund/ Thematic Excellence Program 2020 - Institutional Excellence Subprogram (TKP2020-IKA-12)/Ministry for Innovation and Technology/ National Research, Development and Innovation Fund, New National Excellence Program (UNKP-20-3-II-SZIE-26)/Ministry for Innovation and Technology/ Janos Bolyai Research Scholarship/Hungarian Academy of Sciences/ Switzerland 2022/03/27 Biology (Basel). 2022 Mar 3; 11(3):396. doi: 10.3390/biology11030396" |
