Source: RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY submitted to
PHYLOGENY OF GALERUCINE LEAF BEETLES, INCLUDING FLEA BEETLES (COLEOPTERA, CHRYSOMELIDAE).
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0190938
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
NJ17188
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Oct 31, 2001
Project End Date
Oct 31, 2005
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Kjer, K.
Recipient Organization
RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY
3 RUTGERS PLZA
NEW BRUNSWICK,NJ 08901-8559
Performing Department
ECOLOGY, EVOLUTION AND NATURAL RESOURCES
Non Technical Summary
The Galerucine and flea beetles represent some of the most economically important group of insects. This project will offer taxonomic relationships for these beeltes using morphological and molecular techniques.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
60%
Applied
20%
Developmental
20%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
21131101130100%
Knowledge Area
211 - Insects, Mites, and Other Arthropods Affecting Plants;

Subject Of Investigation
3110 - Insects;

Field Of Science
1130 - Entomology and acarology;
Goals / Objectives
We will infer relationships among the 5 Galerucine tribes and each of their 30 currently recognized named sections, and infer phylogenetic relationships among the 38 valid named tribes or sections in the flea beetles and selected "problematic" genera (sensu Furth and Suzuki, 1944). Taxonomic revision of the tribes and sub-tribes of the Galerucinae and the rank of the flea beetles is planned. Some new sections of the flea beetles could be proposed and some exiting ones eliminated depending on the results of this study.
Project Methods
We will be using standard DNA sequencing techniques to collect DNA data, and will collect discreet morphological character data from pinned/dried specimens. The data will be analyzed with both parsimony and maximum likelihood on PAUP, according to the standards of the journal "Systematic Biology".

Progress 10/31/01 to 10/31/05

Outputs
During this project, my collaborators and graduate students presented eight papers on the phylogeny of leaf beetles. We found that morphologically based phylogenies of galerucine leaf beetles agree with molecular phylogenies only if character polarity is reversed (Kim et al.), and the cucurbitacin-feeding has evoloved multiple times (Gillespie et al, 2003, 2004). We traced the history of host plant shifts in Trirhabda (Swigonova and Kjer). We produced phylogenies of leaf beetles (Duckett et al, 2004), and flea beetles (Duckett and Kjer, 2003) I presented the results of our work at 13 national/international conferences (nine of these I was an invited speaker). Three graduate student, Zuzana Swigonova, Sungjin Kim, and Elizabeth Cosgrove, completed their degree, and I began advising three others who are making good progress. I also wrote six other phylogenetics papers, two of them in Systematic Biology, the top journal in the field.

Impacts
We now have a better picture of the phylogenetic relationships among leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae). Leaf beetles are major agricultural pests, causing damages in the billions of dollars every year. Phylogenies are basic to the understanding of the biology of these pests.

Publications

  • Gillespie, J.J., Kjer, K.M., and Tallamy, D. 2004. The evolution of cucurbitacin pharmacophagy in rootworms: insight from Luperini paraphyly. In: New Developments in the Biology of Chrysomelidae. Pierre H. Jolivet, Jorge A. Santiago-Blay and Michael Schmitt (eds.). SPB Academic Publishers, The Hague, Netherlands. 15 pp.
  • Duckett, C.N., Gillespie, J.J., and K.M. Kjer. 2004. Relationships among the subfamilies of Chrysomelidae inferred from small subunit ribosomal DNA, with special emphasis on the relationship between the flea beetles and the Galerucinae. In: New Developments in the Biology of Chrysomelidae. Pierre H. Jolivet, Jorge A. Santiago-Blay and Michael Schmitt (eds.). SPB Academic Publishers, The Hague, Netherlands. pp. 3-18
  • Gillespie, J. J., Kjer, K.M., Duckett, C.N. and Tallamy, D.W. 2003. Convergent evolution of cucurbitacin-feeding and pharmacophagy in spatially isolated rootworm taxa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae; Galerucinae, Luperini). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 29: 161 - 175.
  • Carle, F.L., and Kjer, K.M. 2002. Phylogeny of Libellula Linnaeus (Odonata:Insecta); Zootaxa 87:1-18.
  • Kjer, K.M., Blahnik, R.J, and Holzenthal, R.W. 2002. Phylogeny of Caddisflies(Insecta, Trichoptera), Zoologica Scripta 31(1) :83-91.


Progress 01/01/04 to 12/31/04

Outputs
Dr. Catherine Duckett and I have sequenced many new chrysomelid (leaf beetle) taxa, toward the recovery of a new phylogeny and taxonomy of Chrysomelidae. Dr. Duckett, in collaboration with Dr, Kjer and Dr. Konstantinov at the Smithsonian Institution has begun the accumulation of morphological characters to help resolve relationships in a combined analysis.

Impacts
A comprehensive phylogeny of Chrysomelidae is in progress.

Publications

  • Duckett, C.N., and Kjer, K.M. 2003. Cladistic analysis of the Oedionychines of southern Brazil (Galerucinae: Alticini) based on two molecular markers. Proc. of the 5th Intl. Symposium on the Chrysomelidae. 117-132. Pensoft, Sofia.
  • Kjer, K.M. 2004. Aligned 18S and Insect phylogeny. Systematic Biology 53:506-514.
  • Bischoff J.F., Sullivan R.F., Kjer K.M., and White J.F., Jr. 2004. Phylogenetic placement of the anamorphic tribe Ustilaginoideae (Hypocreales, Ascomycota). Mycologia 96(5): 1086-1092.
  • Swigonova, Z., and Kjer, K.M. 2004. Phylogeny and Host plant shifts in Trirhabda (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 32:358-374.
  • Xia, X., Xie, Z., and Kjer, K.M. 2003. 18S ribosomal RNA and tetrapod phylogeny. Syst. Biol. 52:283-295.
  • Brosnan, S., Shin, W., Kjer, K.M., and Triemer, R.E. 2003. Phylogeny of the Photosynthetic Euglenophytes Inferred from the Nuclear SSU and Partial LSU rDNA. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 53: 1175-1186.
  • Kim, S., Kjer, K.M., and Duckett, C.N. 2003. Comparison between molecular and morphological-based phylogenies of galerucine/alticine leaf beetles. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Insect Syst. Evol. 34:53-64.


Progress 01/01/03 to 12/31/03

Outputs
Dr. Catherine Duckett spent 2 years working at Rutgers on the project, supported on an NSF "advance grant" (a program designed to encourage retention of women in science). Catherine and I have collected a large molecular dataset addressing the phylogeny of leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae).Two of my graduate students working on chrysomelid phylogeny have graduated; Zuzana Swigonova, Ph.D., and Sungjin Kim, M.S.

Impacts
A comprehensive phylogeny of Chrysomelidae is in progress.

Publications

  • Gillespie, J. J., Kjer, K.M., Duckett, C.N. and Tallamy, D.W. 2003. Convergent evolution of cucurbitacin-feeding and pharmacophagy in spatially isolated rootworm taxa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae; Galerucinae, Luperini). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 29: 161 - 175.
  • Gillespie, J.J., Kjer, K.M., and Tallamy, D. 2003.The evolution of cucurbitacin pharmacophagy in rootworms: insight from Luperini paraphyly. In "New Contributions to the Biology of Chrysomelidae." Pierre H. Jolivet, Jorge A. Santiago-Blay and Michael Schmitt (eds.). SPB Academic Publishers, The Hague, Netherlands. 15 pp.
  • Duckett, C.N., Gillespie, J.J., and K.M. Kjer. 2003.Relationships among the subfamilies of Chrysomelidae inferred from small subunit ribosomal DNA, with special emphasis on the relationship between the flea beetles and the Galerucinae. In "New Contributions to the Biology of Chrysomelidae." Pierre H. Jolivet, Jorge A. Santiago-Blay and Michael Schmitt (eds.). SPB Academic Publishers, The Hague, Netherlands. 15 pp.


Progress 01/01/02 to 12/31/02

Outputs
A morphological expert on the flea beetles and primary collaborator has received an NSF advance grant with me to pursue this work. Preliminary analyses indicate the paraphyly of the flea beetles and the Luperines.

Impacts
We expect to generate a phylogeny for the Galerucinae, sensu lato.

Publications

  • Kim, S., Kjer, K.M., and C. Duckett. 2003. Comparison between molecular and morphological-based phylogenies of galerucine/alticine leaf beetles. (Coleoptera:Chrysomelidae). In Press Insect Syst. Evol.
  • Duckett C.N., and Kjer, K.M. 2003. Phylogenetic analysis of molecular data in the Oedionychina (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) implies mimicry has mislead taxonomists into recognition of polyphyletic assemblages. In press. Symposium of the 4th international congress of Chrysomelidae.


Progress 01/01/01 to 12/31/01

Outputs
No progress to report -- too early in the life of the project to report any activities.

Impacts
(N/A)

Publications

  • No publications reported this period