A mitochondrial 12S and 16S rRNA phylogeny of critical genera of Phoridae (Diptera) and related families of Aschiza

Abstract

<jats:p>Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial 12S and 16S rRNA gene sequences supports the monophyly of the Phoridae. Within this family the Phorinae clade includes two aberrant termitophilous subfamilies, the Thaumatoxeninae and the Termitoxeniinae, which cluster with Dohrniphora and Diplonevra. These two genera include termitophiles and parasitoids of termites, so we hypothesize that these termitophilous phorids are a monophyletic group. While the data neither refute nor support the assumed monophyly of the Metopininae, the genera of this subfamily were not monophyletic in our analysis, but fell into two subclades that correspond with the tribes Metopinini and Gymnophorini.</jats:p>