Facing the infinity: tackling large samples of challenging Chironomidae (Diptera) with an integrative approach

PeerJ

article

Caroline Chimeno¹  Björn Rulik²  Alessandro Manfrin³  Gregor Kalinkat⁴  Franz Hölker⁴  Viktor Baranov⁵ 

[1] Bavarian State Collection of Zoology;Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change;Institute for Environmental Sciences, iES Landau, RPTU University of Kaiserslautern-Landau;Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries;Estación Biológica de Doñana-CSIC/Doñana Biological Station-CSIC

关键词: Integrative taxonomy;    Chironomidae;    Biodiversity;    DNA barcoding;    Megadiverse;    Bulk sample processing;    Non biting midges;    Molecular species identification;    Morphological species identification;    Freshwater;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.15336

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Background Integrative taxonomy is becoming ever more significant in biodiversity research as scientists are tackling increasingly taxonomically challenging groups. Implementing a combined approach not only guarantees more accurate species identification, but also helps overcome limitations that each method presents when applied on its own. In this study, we present one application of integrative taxonomy for the highly abundant and particularly diverse fly taxon Chironomidae (Diptera). Although non-biting midges are key organisms in merolimnic systems, they are often cast aside in ecological surveys because they are very challenging to identify and extremely abundant. Methods Here, we demonstrate one way of applying integrative methods to tackle this highly diverse taxon. We present a three-level subsampling method to drastically reduce the workload of bulk sample processing, then apply morphological and molecular identification methods in parallel to evaluate species diversity and to examine inconsistencies across methods. Results 90% of its diversity. However, despite reducing the processing workload drastically, the performance of our taxonomist was affected by mistakes, caused by large amounts of material. We conducted misidentifications for 9% of vouchers, which may not have been recovered had we not applied a second identification method. On the other hand, we were able to provide species information in cases where molecular methods could not, which was the case for 14% of vouchers. Therefore, we conclude that when wanting to implement non-biting midges into ecological frameworks, it is imperative to use an integrative approach.

【 授权许可】

CC BY