Combining Nuclear and Mitochondrial Loci Provides Phylogenetic Information in the Philopterus Complex of Lice (Psocodea: Ischnocera: Philopteridae)

Molecular phylogenetics of the avian feather louse Philopterus-complex (Phthiraptera: Philopteridae)

The avian feather louse Philopterus-complex (Phthiraptera: Ischnocera: Philopteridae) currently contains 12 genera that have been grouped together because of shared morphological characteristics. Although previously lumped into a single genus (Philopterus), more recent morphological treatments have separated the group into several different genera. Here we evaluate the status of these genera using DNA sequence data from 118 ingroup specimens belonging to ten genera in the Philopterus-complex: Australophilopterus Mey, 2004, Cinclosomicola Mey 2004, Clayiella Eichler, 1940, Corcorides Mey, 2004, Mayriphilopterus Mey, 2004, Paraphilopterus Mey 2004, Philopteroides Mey 2004, Philopterus Nitzsch, 1818, Tyranniphilopterus Mey, 2004, and Vinceopterus Gustafsson, Lei, Chu, Zou, and Bush, 2019. Our sampling includes 97 new louse-host association records. Our analyses suggest that the genus Debeauxoecus Conci, 1941, parasitic on pittas (Aves: Pittidae), is outside of the Philopterus-complex, and that there is strong support for the monophyly of a group containing the remaining genera from the complex. Some diverse genera, such as Philopterus (sensu stricto) and Mayriphilopterus are supported as monophyletic, whereas the genera Australophilopterus, Philopteroides, and Tyranniphilopterus are not. The present study is the largest phylogenetic reconstruction of avian lice belonging to the Philopterus-complex to date and suggests that further generic revision is needed in the group to integrate molecular and morphological information.

PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS OF GUIMARAESIELLA AND PRICEIELLA (PHTHIRAPTERA: ISCHNOCERA) FROM BABBLERS AND NON-BABBLERS (PASSERIFORMES)

Babblers (Passeriformes: Leiothrichidae, Pellorneidae, Timaliidae) are parasitized by more genera of lice of the Brueelia complex than any other group of songbirds. However, the relationships of these louse groups are poorly known. We here try to resolve the relationships between Guimaraesiella (Guimaraesiella), Guimaraesiella (Cicchinella), and their putative sister group Priceiella by using mitochondrial cytochrome c subunit 1 (COI), 12S, and 16S sequences. Our data indicate that G. (Cicchinella) forms a monophyletic group of lice from babblers, but the relationship between G. (Guimaraesiella), G. (Cicchinella), and Priceiella could not be resolved. Moreover, the position of the third lineage of babbler-specific lice, containing only the aberrant species Guimaraesiella montisodalis, is unresolved. Morphologically, this species is different from all other Guimaraesiella in several characters and may represent a distinct lineage. We present some data indicating that (1) the Nanling Mountain range may be a biogeographical barrier to chewing lice and (2) host participation in mixed-species feeding flocks may influence host associations in Brueelia-complex chewing lice.