Miss Shannon Tetley1, Dr Erinn Fagan-Jeffries1,2, Dr Richard Glatz2,3,4, Dr Michelle Guzik1,2

1School of Biological Science, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia, 2The South Australian Museum, Adelaide, Australia, 3School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia, 4D’Estrees Entomology and Science Services, MacGillivray, Australia

Biography:

Shannon is a PhD researcher studying the Mesostoinae, a subfamily of parasitoid wasps. Shannon uses morphological analyses and DNA sequencing to describe new species and assess the diversity of the subfamily.

Abstract:

The Mesostoinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) are a poorly understood subfamily of parasitoid wasps. The morphological definition of the subfamily is poorly defined, which means identification of specimens are challenging and rely heavily on genetic analyses to confirm their taxonomic position. However, the genetic data available are currently limited, and phylogenies are either poorly resolved or have very few representatives, especially from Australia. There are six endemic genera currently described from Australia, each containing very few described species. The biology of these endemic wasps is also largely unknown; Ovaustra aurantia, from Kangaroo Island, is a parasitoid of the enigma moth (Aenigmatinea glatzella), whilst species Mesostoa kerri is a gall former on Banksia marginata. A recent phylogenomics project suggests that there is potentially an abundance of species and genera that are undescribed, highlighting the need for taxonomic work on the subfamily in Australia. This talk will present initial results of the work to expand on existing phylogenies of the subfamily with mitogenomic data and describe new species and genera within that phylogenomic framework.