[G] Oral presentations in English

[G-15] Intensive survey of Wolbachia infection across Japanese Pyraustinae and Spilomelinae moths

◯Tomohiro Muro¹, Yuki Matsui², Hideshi Naka³, Susumu Katsuma¹ (1. The University of Tokyo, 2. Kyushu University, 3. Tottori University)

Wolbachia is an endosymbiotic bacterium that is estimated to be found in nearly half of all insects. To reveal a macro-scale pattern of Wolbachia infection, we investigated infection prevalence in the subfamilies Pyraustinae and Spilomelinae (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), sister taxa that represent two of highly diversified moth groups. PCR screening for approximately 180 species detected Wolbachia infection in at least 50 species. Strain typing based on wsp gene sequences confirmed the presence of supergroups A and B Wolbachia strains, with a possible bias among host clades. Six species infected with Wolbachia were further investigated to characterize reproductive manipulations, and found that none of them showed a skewed sex ratio, indicating the absence of male killing or feminization. The data obtained in this study will serve as a foundation to elucidate general evolutionary dynamics in insect–Wolbachia interaction.