A phylogenomic study of Aculeata focusing on the families traditionally placed in Vespoidea and their neotropical components

• Grant number: 21/02196-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2021
• End date: July 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Taxonomy of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Fernando Barbosa Noll
• Grantee: Felipe Vieira de Freitas
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências, Letras e Ciências Exatas (IBILCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de São José do Rio Preto. São José do Rio Preto , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 19/09215-6 - Countering the taxonomic impediment of aculeate wasps: micro- and macroregional visions of the neotropical fauna, AP.BTA.TEM

Abstract

Aculeata, the stinging Hymenoptera, is a monophyletic group with an impressive richness of described species (~60,000) and a diversity of behaviors. While the phylogenetic relationships in a few groups of Aculeata are extremely well studied (bees, ants, social wasps), many of the relationships among its main inner groups are controversial. Vespoidea, one of three traditionally recognized superfamilies (along with Apoidea and Chrysidoidea), has its monophyly contested by part of recent results. Moreover, some of the families that composed the family originally (e.g. Tiphiidae e Bradinobaenidae) have had their monophyly contested. The sampling of Vespoidea diversity still scarce to take safe conclusions about these subjects, particularly in phylogenomic research published in the last decade. Much of the lack of consensus about the monophyly and composition of Vespoidea and its subfamilies is due to the absence of a broad sampling reflecting the real diversity of the group. Therefore, this research proposal intends to develop a phylogenomic study of Aculeata, focusing on the families traditionally positioned in Vespoidea and its Neotropical elements, using the datasets and results from the recently published phylogenomic studies as a starting point. The scholarship candidate is one of the few researchers with practical experience working on all the steps of a phylogenomic study working on Hymenoptera currently in Brazil. This project will be closely integrated to the thematic project "Desimpedimento taxonômico de vespas aculeadas: visões micro e macro-regionais da fauna neotropical". This integration will involve sharing knowledge and expertise from someone that already develops phylogenomic research, as well as providing a broad and updated phylogenetic hypothesis to Vespoidea, to guide the progress of the main project with a better delimitation of its remaining targets. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FREITAS, FELIPE, V. New genus and subgenus of South American long-horned bees (Apidae, Eucerini). Zootaxa, v. 5196, n. 4, p. 6-pg., 2022-10-21. (19/09215-6, 18/09666-5, 21/02196-6)

FREITAS, FELIPE, V; BRANSTETTER, MICHAEL G.; FRANCESCHINI-SANTOS, VINICIUS H.; DORCHIN, ACHIK; WRIGHT, KAREN W.; LOPEZ-URIBE, MARGARITA M.; GRISWOLD, TERRY; SILVEIRA, FERNANDO A.; ALMEIDA, EDUARDO A. B.. UCE phylogenomics, biogeography, and classification of long-horned bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Eucerini), with insights on using specimens with extremely degraded DNA. INSECT SYSTEMATICS AND DIVERSITY, v. 7, n. 4, p. 21-pg., 2023-07-01. (18/09666-5, 21/02196-6, 19/09215-6)