title: DNA barcoding and the associated PhylAphidB@se website for the identification of European aphids (Insecta: Hemiptera: Aphididae).
abstract: Aphids constitute a diverse group of plant-feeding insects and are among the most important crop pests in temperate regions. Their morphological identification is time-consuming and requires specific knowledge, training and skills that may take years to acquire. We assessed the advantages and limits of DNA barcoding with the standard COI barcode fragment for the identification of European aphids. We constructed a large reference dataset of barcodes from 1020 specimens belonging to 274 species and 87 genera sampled throughout Europe and set up a database-driven website allowing species identification from query sequences.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this unbiased sampling of the taxonomic diversity of European aphids, intraspecific divergence ranged from 0.0% to 3.9%, with a mean value of 0.29%, whereas mean congeneric divergence was 6.4%, ranging from 0.0% to 15%. Neighbor-joining analysis generated a tree in which most species clustered in distinct genetic units. Most of the species with undifferentiated or overlapping barcodes belonged to the genus Aphis or, to a lesser extent, the genera Brachycaudus, Dysaphis and Macrosiphum. The taxa involved were always morphologically similar or closely related and belonged to species groups known to present taxonomic difficulties.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data confirm that COI barcoding is a useful identification tool for aphids. Barcode identification is straightforward and reliable for 80% of species, including some difficult to distinguish on the basis of morphological characters alone. Unsurprisingly, barcodes often failed to distinguish between species from groups for which classical taxonomy has also reached its limits, leading to endless revisions and discussions about species and subspecies definitions. In such cases, the development of an effective procedure for the accurate identification of aphid specimens continues to pose a difficult challenge.
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Armelle
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coeur d'Acier
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Astrid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cruaud
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Artige
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Gwenaëlle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Genson
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Laure
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Clamens
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pierre
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR IGEPP (Institute of Genetics, Environnement and Plant Protection), Le Rheu, France.
authors.forename: Sylvie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hudaverdian
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR IGEPP (Institute of Genetics, Environnement and Plant Protection), Le Rheu, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Christophe
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Simon
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jousselin
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1062 CBGP (Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations), Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Yves
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Rasplus
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001042:Aphids / Q000235:genetics*; D058893:DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic; D030541:Databases, Genetic; D005060:Europe; D010802:Phylogeny; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA