Collaborative Research: ARTS: Integrating phylogenomics and taxonomic training to overcome the taxonomic impediment in the genus Nylanderia

Towson University, Towson MD

Investigators

Abstract

Ants are among the most ubiquitous and ecologically important animals on earth. Their sociality has led to the evolution of diverse life histories and morphologies, yet half of the estimated 30,000 ant species remain undiscovered and await description by scientists. Ants’ outsized impacts extend to invasive species, which rank among the most ecologically and economically damaging taxa worldwide. One of the primary obstacles to effective management of invasive ants is taxonomic uncertainty, that is, many species cannot be reliably distinguished from one another or associated with stable scientific names. For example, hundreds of species of ants in the genus Nylanderia closely resemble one another, but only 15 species are known to be problematic. Although these ants are difficult to identify, their ubiquity makes them impossible to ignore; Nylanderia specimens fill museum drawers of unidentified ants, and the genus comprises up to 20% of unidentified ant specimens intercepted at US ports of entry. Taxonomic revision of this important but taxonomically chaotic ant genus is urgently needed to define species boundaries of globetrotting taxa, as well as to name the many species that currently lack description. Because many invasive ant taxa present similar problems, this project focuses also on training the next generation of ant taxonomists and professional insect identifiers, which is essential to overcoming the taxonomic impediment in this group. This project sidesteps a historical reliance on ant worker morphology by generating an unprecedented molecular genomic dataset, using ultraconserved elements (UCEs), to reconstruct the global evolutionary history of Nylanderia. This phylogeny will form the basis of an exhaustive taxonomic revision of the genus, which will clarify existing nomenclature, describe 100 new species, and resolve species boundaries in 15 widespread invasive species complexes. By focusing on the value of internal and external male morphology to species delimitation and practical identification, the researchers will introduce unexplored character sets into the study of Nylanderia and test the phylogenetic value of these characters against currently used worker-caste ants and queens. The project will train early career taxonomists through undergraduate courses involving new species descriptions and invasive ant identification workshops, and a public art-science exhibition about invasive ants will illustrate the ecological importance of ants. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.