Multilocus phylogeny and ecological differentiation of the “Eupelmus urozonus species group” (Hymenoptera, Eupelmidae) in the West-Palaearctic

BACKGROUND: The ecological differentiation of insects with parasitic life-style is a complex process that may involve phylogenetic constraints as well as morphological and/or behavioural adaptations. In most cases, the relative importance of these driving forces remains unexplored. We investigate here this question for the “Eupelmus urozonus species group” which encompasses parasitoid wasps of potential interest in biological control. This was achieved using seven molecular markers, reliable records on 91 host species and a proxy of the ovipositor length. RESULTS: After using an adequate partitioning scheme, Maximum likelihood and Bayesian approaches provide a well-resolved phylogeny supporting the monophyly of this species group and highlighting its subdivision into three sub-groups. Great variations of both the ovipositor length and the host range (specialist versus generalist) were observed at this scale, with these two features being not significantly constrained by the phylogeny. Ovipositor length was not shown as a significant predictor of the parasitoid host range. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides firstly the first evidence for the strong lability of both the ovipositor’s length and the realised host range in a set of phylogenetically related and sympatric species. In both cases, strong contrasts were observed between sister species. Moreover, no significant correlation was found between these two features. Alternative drivers of the ecological differentiation such as interspecific interactions are proposed and the consequences on the recruitment of these parasitoids on native and exotic pests are discussed. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-015-0571-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.