Molecular phylogeny of the leaf beetle subfamily Criocerinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) and the correlated evolution of reproductive organs

Phylogenetic relationships among major groups of Criocerinae were reconstructed using molecular data (mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I and 12S rDNA, and nuclear histone 3). The monophyly of Criocerinae was consistently and robustly supported. The Lema group including Lema, Oulema and Neolema was recovered as a clade, with the latter two genera imbedded within Lema. The Lilioceris group was placed as the sister taxon of the Lema group, and the genus Crioceris was identified as the sister taxon of the Lilioceris + Lema groups. The monophyly and/or validity of Mecoprosopus Chujo, 1951 and the subgenera Lema, Petauristes Latreille, 1829, Quasilema Monros, 1960, Microlema Pic, 1932, and Bradyceris Chujo, 1951 were not confirmed. The monophyly of the subgenus Lema except for the type species L. cyanea was supported by molecular and morphological data, and we termed it the cyanella clade. The present molecular phylogeny was compared with previous concepts with respect to the validity of each genus/subgenus. A revision of several genera is necessary. Based on the phylogenic result, the character evolution of the reproductive organs was analyzed. The ancestral states of this character system were parsimoniously reconstructed. Various shapes of the spermatheca were observed in the subfamily. A convoluted spermatheca evolved once, and reversals to the ancestral state took place several times independently. An elongation of a part of the intromittent organ also occurred several times independently. The length of the male and female reproductive ducts, which are in physical contact during copulation, showed a tight positive correlation even after removing phylogenetic effects. This strongly suggests coevolution between the male and female genital length.