ALLOZYME DIVERGENCE AND PHYLOGENETIC-RELATIONSHIPS AMONG SPECIES OF TEPHRITID FLIES

Multilocus enzyme electrophoresis data from 24 orthologous loci (212 a lleles) were used to infer the genetic similarities between 11 Tephrit idae pest species from the Ceratitis, Trirhithrum Capparimyia, Bactroc era, Anastrepha and Rhagoletis genera. Within some of the considered s pecies, different degrees of genetic variability were demonstrated, wh ich appear to be related to zoogeography and to the biological traits peculiar to each species. Nei (1978) and Cavalli-Sforza & Edwards (196 7) genetic distances were used to express the genetic divergence and t o infer phylogenetic relationships among the species. The UPGMA cluste ring algorithm and the optimality criteria of Fitch & Margoliash (1967 ), with (KITSCH) and without (FITCH) the tree constrained to have cont emporary tips, were used. All the methods indicate the same clusters o f species. One cluster is composed of Ceratitis capitata, Trirhithrum coffeae and Capparimyia savastanoi, another is composed of Rhagoletis cerasi, Bactrocera dorsalis ann Bactrocera oleae. A further loose clus ter is comprised of Ceratitis rosa and Anastrepha spp. The congruence between electrophoretic phylogeny and morphological classification is discussed. Our analysis also elucidated cases, within the Ceratitis an d Bactrocera genera, of interest from the evolutionary point of view, where allozyme dendrograms do not correlate well with morphological ta xonomic relationships.