- Title
- Molecular identification of Azolla invasions in Africa: The Azolla specialist, Stenopelmus rufinasus proves to be an excellent taxonomist
- Creator
- Madeira, P T, Dray, F Allen, Coetzee, Julie A, Paterson, Iain D, Tipping, Philip W
- Subject
- To be catalogued
- Date
- 2016
- Type
- text
- Type
- article
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10962/424765
- Identifier
- vital:72182
- Identifier
- xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2016.03.007"
- Description
- Biological control of Azolla filiculoides in South Africa with the Azolla specialist Stenopelmus rufinasus has been highly successful. However, field surveys showed that the agent utilized another Azolla species, thought to be the native Azolla pinnata subsp. africana, which contradicted host specificity trials. It is notoriously difficult to determine Azolla species based on morphology so genetic analyses were required to confirm the identity of the Azolla used by the agent. Extensive sampling was conducted and samples were sequenced at the trnL-trnF and trnG-trnR chloroplastic regions and the nuclear ITS1 region. Current literature reported A. filiculoides as the only Section Azolla species in southern Africa but 24 samples were identified as Azolla cristata, an introduced species within Section Azolla that was not used during host specificity trials. A. pinnata subsp. africana was only located at one site in southern Africa, while the alien A. pinnata subsp. asiatica was located at three. What was thought to be A. pinnata subsp. africana was in fact A. cristata, a closer relative of A. filiculoides and a suitable host according to specificity trials. This study confirms that S. rufinasus is a proficient Azolla taxonomist but also supports the use of molecular techniques for resolving taxonomic conundrums.
- Format
- computer, online resource, application/pdf, 1 online resource (7 pages), pdf
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Language
- English
- Relation
- South African Journal of Botany, Madeira, P.T., Hill, M.P., Dray Jr, F.A., Coetzee, J.A., Paterson, I.D. and Tipping, P.W., 2016. Molecular identification of Azolla invasions in Africa: The Azolla specialist, Stenopelmus rufinasus proves to be an excellent taxonomist. South African Journal of Botany, 105, pp.299-305, South African Journal of Botany volume 105 p. 299 2016 0254-6299
- Rights
- Publisher
- Rights
- Use of this resource is governed by the terms and conditions of the Elsevier Terms and Conditions Statement (https://www.elsevier.com/legal/elsevier-website-terms-and-conditions)
- Rights
- Open Access
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Collections
Coetzee, Julie A (Prof)
Hill, Martin Patrick (Distinguished Professor)
RU DST/NRF SARChI for Insects in Sustainable Agricultural Ecosystems
RU Department of Zoology and Entomology
SDG 15. Life On Land
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