New descriptions of endophalli of Timarcha Samuelson, 1819 (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

The endophalli of Timarcha arragonica Balbi, 1892, T. lusitanica (Fabricius, 1781), T. pratensis Duftschmid, 1825 and T.

The chiasmata systems of Scottish (Demaison, 1896) (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

The meiotic systems of some Scottish individuals of the rare Chrysolinalatecinctassp.intermedia (Franz, 1938) have been analyzed from meiotic cells at diakinesis to study the types of chromosomal bivalents and the number and locations of their chiasmata. The mean number of unichiasmate was about two-thirds and that of bichiasmate bivalents about one-third.

A cytogenetic analysis in two species of Cassidinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Two species of Cassidinae have been chromosomally analyzed, Kraatz, 1874 from France, with 2n = 18, 8 + Xy meioformula and (Klug, 1829) from Uruguay, with 2n = 30, 14 + Xy meioformula. The karyotype of the former is composed of similar meta/submetacentric autosomes, a small X-chromosome and a tiny y-chromosome, as many other and tribe Cassidini species, whereas that of the latter has four pairs of acro/telocentric autosomes at least and the remaining meta/submetacentrics including the X-chromosome and a tiny y-chromosome, which points out to its probable apomorphic origin by centric fissions, as found in some other species of the tribe Mesomphaliini.

Endophallus structure: a promising tool for cryptic species identification in Timarcha Samouelle, 1819 (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Chrysomelinae).

Contrary to the subtle differences of habitus found between many species of Timarcha their internal sacs of male genitalia have shown a remarkable variation. Thirty-two Palaearctic taxa, mostly from the Iberian Peninsula, have been analyzed for this trait, which can be used for species diagnosis and also for establishing species groups of close relatedness in agreement mainly with genetic analyses. According with this trait, new synonymies and taxonomical changes are proposed: T.

Updated checklist of Balearic leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

The first updated checklist of Balearic leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae) since 1960 is presented here, evincing the presence of 118 species. This estimation is clearly lower than the 141 species reported in the only list available to date (Jolivet, 1953), and the dissimilarity is even more pronounced if we take into account that 22 new species have been added during this period. The possible explanations for these differences are discussed.

A chromosomal analysis of three species of Timarcha (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Chrysomelinae).

The karyotypes of three species of Timarcha Latreille, 1829 have been analysed. Timarcha (Metallotimarcha) metallica (Laicharting, 1781), has 18 + Xyp male meioformula and 2n = 38 chromosomes, similar to those found in the two species of subgenus Americanotimarcha Jolivet, 1948, in agreement with morphological and molecular phylogenetic grounds. Timarcha (Timarcha) carmelenae Petitpierre, 2013 displays 9 + Xyp and 2n = 20 chromosomes as in morphologically related Andalusian species, whereas Timarcha (Timarcha) parvicollis ssp.

New contributions to the molecular systematics and the evolution of host-plant associations in the genus Chrysolina (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Chrysomelinae).

The taxonomic circumscription of the large and diverse leaf beetle genus Chrysolina Motschulsky is not clear, and its discrimination from the closely related genus Oreina Chevrolat has classically been controversial. In addition, the subgeneric arrangement of the species is unstable, and proposals segregating Chrysolina species into new genera have been recently suggested. In this context, the availability of a phylogenetic framework would provide the basis for a stable taxonomic system, but the existing phylogenies are based on few taxa and have low resolution.

A chromosomal analysis of twelve species of the subfamily Chrysomelinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Twelve species of chrysomelines, all but one from the Palaearctic region, have been cytogenetically analyzed, mostly through their male meiotic metaphases I. Ambrostoma superbum has 2n = 40 (Xy(p)), Chrysolina colasi, Oreina fairmairiana and the Neotropical Platyphora spectabilis have 2n = 24 (Xy(p)), Chrysolina gebleri 2n = 26 (XY(p)), Colaspidema barbarum 2n = 28 (Xy(p)), Crosita altaica and C. rugulosa 2n = 30 (Xy(p)), Phratora polaris, Ph.

B1 was the ancestor B chromosome variant in the western Mediterranean area in the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis plorans.

We analyzed the distribution of 2 repetitive DNAs, i.e. ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and a satellite DNA (satDNA), on the B chromosomes found in 17 natural populations of the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis ploransplorans sampled around the western Mediterranean region, including the Iberian Peninsula, Balearic Islands, Sicily, and Tunisia.

Cytogenetic analysis of Lagria villosa (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae): emphasis on the mechanism of association of the Xy(p) sex chromosomes.

The Xy(p) sex determination mechanism is the system most frequent and ancestral to Coleoptera. Moreover, the presence of argyrophilous material associated with the sex bivalent is described as being responsible for the maintenance and association of these chromosomes. There are no karyotype data available regarding the genus Lagria and no consensus in the literature regarding the argyrophilous material present in the lumen of sex bivalent.

Cytogenetics, cytotaxonomy and chromosomal evolution of Chrysomelinae revisited (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Nearly 260 taxa and chromosomal races of subfamily Chrysomelinae have been chromosomally analyzed showing a wide range of diploid numbers from 2n = 12 to 2n = 50, and four types of male sex-chromosome systems. with the parachute-like ones Xy(p) and XY(p) clearly prevailing (79.0%), but with the XO well represented too (19.

A chromosomal analysis of four species of Chilean Chrysomelinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Four species of Chilean leaf beetles in the subfamily Chrysomelinae have been cytogenetically analyzed, Blaptea elguetai Petitpierre, 2011, Henicotherus porteri Bréthes, 1929 and Jolivetia obscura (Philippi, 1864) show 2n = 28 chromosomes and a 13 + Xyp male meioformula, and Pataya nitida (Philippi, 1864) has the highest number of 2n = 38 chromosomes. The karyotype of Henicotherus porteri is made of mostly small meta/submetacentric chromosomes, and that of Jolivetia obscura displays striking procentric blocks of heterochromatin at pachytene autosomic bivalents using conventional staining. These findings are discussed in relation to previous cytogenetic data and current taxonomy of the subfamily.

DNA barcoding insect-host plant associations.

Short-sequence fragments ('DNA barcodes') used widely for plant identification and inventorying remain to be applied to complex biological problems. Host-herbivore interactions are fundamental to coevolutionary relationships of a large proportion of species on the Earth, but their study is frequently hampered by limited or unreliable host records. Here we demonstrate that DNA barcodes can greatly improve this situation as they (i) provide a secure identification of host plant species and (ii) establish the authenticity of the trophic association.

A new contribution to the cytogenetic knowledge of Alticinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Seven species of Alticinae, mostly from Spain, have been chromosomally surveyed from male meiotic or mitotic cells. The two Spanish species of Oedionychus, O. cinctus and O.

A cytogenetic study on three Chilean species of Chrysomelinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Three species of Chilean leaf beetles were chromosomally analyzed. The endemic Araucanomela wellingtonensis displays a male meioformula of 13 + Xyp with 2n = 28 chromosomes and an asymmetric karyotype with two large autosome pairs and 12 medium/small pairs of autosomes and sex-chromosomes, a diploid number which had not been found among the other species of the subtribe Paropsina sensu lato studied to date. Strichosa eburata presents a meioformula of 11 + Xyp, 2n = 24 chromosomes, as occurs in many species of chrysomelines belonging to different subtribes.

C-bands on chromosomes of 32 beetle species (Coleoptera: Elateridae, Cantharidae, Oedemeridae, Cerambycidae, Anthicidae, Chrysomelidae, Attelabidae and Curculionidae).

C-banding patterns of 32 beetle species from the families Elateridae, Cantharidae, Oedemeridae, Cerambycidae, Anthicidae, Chrysomelidae, Attelabidae and Curculionidae were studied using the C-banding technique. Mitotic and meiotic chromosomes were previously described for 14 species. From among 18 species that had never been cytogenetically studied, we determined the diploid and haploid chromosome numbers and the sex determination system for 12 beetles.

Evolutionary dynamics of a B chromosome invasion in island populations of the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis plorans.

Four natural populations of the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis plorans in the Mallorca island were analysed for several years revealing the recent invasion of the B1 chromosome from the south-west part of the island (Palma region) towards the north and to the east. In only 10 years, the mean number of Bs in the northern population at Pollença increased from 0.053 to 0.

Complex structural features of satellite DNA sequences in the genus Pimelia (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae): random differential amplification from a common 'satellite DNA library'.

The major satellites of the nine species of the subgenera Pimelia s. str. and Amblyptera characterised in this paper are composed of longer monomers (500 and 700 bp) than those described previously in 26 Pimelia s.

A cytogenetic study of the leaf beetle genus Cyrtonus (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

The chromosomes of ten species of Cyrtonus and the genome sizes of six are surveyed. Among the total of 15 chromosomally studied species, 11 have 2n = 28 chromosomes and a 13 + Xyp male meioformula, three have 2n = 40 and 19 + Xyp and one 2n = 46 and 22 + Xyp. All but one species with 28 chromosomes show only metacentric or submetacentric chromosomes, whereas the species with 40 and 46 chromosomes display some telocentrics or subtelocentrics, that are probably derived from the former by centric fissions.

Evolution of low-copy number and major satellite DNA sequences coexisting in two Pimelia species-groups (Coleoptera).

Satellite DNA sequence evolution has been studied in several insect species from the genus Pimelia (Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera). Low-copy number homologs of the previously characterized major satellite DNA from P. monticola (PMON) have been cloned and sequenced from six congeneric species belonging to two species groups: Ibero-Balearic and Moroccan.

Satellite DNA in the elm leaf beetle, Xanthogaleruca luteola (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae): characterization, interpopulation analysis, and chromosome location.

In this paper the satellite DNA (stDNA) of the phytophagous beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola is analyzed. It is organized in a tandem repeat of 149-bp-long monomers, has an AT content of 59%, and presents inverted internal repeats. Restriction analysis of the total DNA with methylation-sensitive enzymes suggests that this repetitive DNA is not methylated.

Higher-order organization and compartmentalization of satellite DNA PIM357 in species of the coleopteran genus Pimelia.

The PIM357 satellite DNA family is present in 26 Pimelia taxa (Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera) with endemic congeneric species from the Canary Islands showing higher interrepeat variability than continental ones. In this paper, we compare the repetitive DNA sequences of a Canarian species that has distinct subfamilies of repeat units, P. radula ascendens, with another without such subfamilies, P.

Evolutionary dynamics of satellite DNA family PIM357 in species of the genus Pimelia (Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera).

A large number of repeats of a satellite DNA (stDNA) family have been cloned and sequenced from species and populations of the genus Pimelia (Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera). The beetles were collected in the Canary Islands, Morocco, the Iberian Peninsula, and the Balearic Islands in order to analyze the evolutionary forces and processes acting on abundant stDNAs conserved at the genus level. This repetitive family is composed of an abundant A-T-rich stDNA, with basic units of 357 bp.

Sequential FISH analysis with rDNA genes and Ag-NOR banding in the lady beetle Olla v-nigrum (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae).

We have characterized the meiosis of Olla v-nigrum by standard analysis, performed a NOR study using NOR banding, FISH of rDNA genes and sequential FISH/AgNOR analysis, and adapted the FISH methodology to Coccinellidae. The chromosome number determined at metaphase I was n = 9 + Xyp. At zygotene it was possible to identify the sex vesicle which presented a deeply stained heteropycnotic block.

Characterization and chromosome location of satellite DNA in the leaf beetle Chrysolina americana (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

This paper is the first record of the satellite DNA of the specialized phytophagous genus Chrysolina. The satellite DNA of Chrysolina americana is organized in a tandem repeat of monomers 189 bp long, has a A + T content of 59.6% and presents direct and inverted internal repeats.