Molecular identification of ecologically relevant hoverflies (Diptera, Syrphidae) from eastern India

Abstract

Syrphid identification keys that cover all life cycle stages of the taxonomy are insufficient, and there are problems with the morphological identification of these flies. Cytochrome oxidase I (COI) is widely used for molecular identification and phylogenetic reconstruction. The study examined the effectiveness of COI in identifying 18 specimens containing 13 agriculturally important species of syrphids collected from different geo-climatic regions of West Bengal. Phylogenetic analysis was performed using Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian (BA) trees, which were almost congruent. Barcodes were generated for Dasysyrphus orsua and Eristalinus polychromata for the first time. This is the first study to use the COI for barcoding ecologically and agriculturally relevant syrphid flies from eastern India and their phylogeny. The findings contribute to the basic understanding of the diversity of syrphids across West Bengal and the molecular characterization of hoverflies, promoting their conservation and thus leading to the augmentation of crops.