Origin of Boll Weevil populations in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay: hypothesis based on the study of two mitochondrial genes

CONFALONIERI, VIVIANA ANDREA; SCATAGLINI, MARÍA AMALIA; LANTERI, ANALÍA ALICIA

Fortaleza, Ceará, Brasil

Workshop; Cotton in the Southern Cone. Final International Workshop on "Integrated Pest Management of the Cotton Boll Weevil in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay."; 2001

SENASA, COMMON FUND FOR COMMODITIES, INTERNATIONAL COTTON ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

The boll weevil Anthonomus grandis is the most harmful insect pest of cotton in the Americas. In a previous contribution, we applied RAPD technique to the study of boll weevil population from Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay and suggested that even though some populations could be introduced there are populations that would occur in natural forest of South America since prehistoric time. The main goal of the present contribution is to test this hypothesis using sequences of the mitochondrial genes Cytochrome Oxidase I and II. The results corroborated that the studied populations have different origins: those from cotton fields and disturbed areas are related to "Southeastern form"; those that occur in wild areas would be related to the ancestral "Mexican form".