The Fast Evolution of the Stenobothrini Grasshoppers (Orthoptera, Acrididae, and Gomphocerinae) Revealed by an Analysis of the Control Region of mtDNA, with an Emphasis on the Stenobothrus eurasius Group

TL;DR

This study examines the evolution and hybridization of two grasshopper species using mitochondrial DNA, revealing patterns of genetic introgression and divergence.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into mtDNA introgression and divergence times in the Stenobothrus genus using the control region of mtDNA.

Findings

mtDNA haplotypes in S. eurasius suggest introgression from S. hyalosuperficies in the contact zone.

Phylogenetic analysis shows a star-like topology for Stenobothrus, with S. eurasius forming a distinct branch.

The control region analysis reveals high variability and potential hybridization between the two species.

Abstract

Grasshopper species of the Stenobothrini tribe are known by the wide diversity of their premating traits, such as acoustic behavior and morphological characters. However, the phylogenetic relationships, divergence time, and phylogeography of these species inferred with the mtDNA markers (the control region and the COI gene) did not reflect the species divergence. The analysis of interspecific and intraspecific variability in the control region in two hybridizing species of this genus, S. eurasius and S. hyalosuperficies, supports the hypothesis of putative hybridization between the species and shows the direction of the mtDNA introgression.

The two cryptic grasshopper species of the genus Stenobothrus, S. eurasius and S. hyalosuperficies, demonstrate different acoustic behavior despite a strong similarity in morphology. A hybridization between these species is possible in the contact zone; however, there are little molecular data about the relationships of these species. The analysis of the mtDNA control region (CR) reveals that haplotypes of S. hyalosuperficies have more in common with the more distant Stenobothrus species than with the closely related S. eurasius. In the contact zone, S. eurasius has mt-haplotypes shared with S. hyalosuperficies, which might indicate an introgression of mtDNA from S. hyalosuperficies to the S. eurasius gene pool. We also analyze the structure and evolutionary rate of the mtDNA CR for the Stenobothrus genus and estimate the time of divergence of the species within the genus. The phylogenetic tree of the tribe Stenobothrini reconstructed with either the CR or COI gave the same four groups. The phylogenetic tree of the Stenobothrus genus has a star-like topology with each mtDNA haplotype found in any analyzed species, except S. eurasius, which forms a separate branch. The maximum degree of incomplete lineage sorting can demonstrate either ancestral polymorphism or introgression.

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