Análise molecular de seis populações de Thalassomya gutae (Diptera, Chironomidae) da costa nordeste brasileira

Abstract

Species of Chironomidae living in marine environments are recorded in coastal areas throughout the world. These species belong to several taxonomic groups, including representatives of the Telmatogetoninae subfamily. Telmatogetoninae is predominantly found in intertidal habitats, being associated with rocky shores. It is represented by two genera: Telmatogeton Schiner and Thalassomya Schiner. Telmatogeton is recorded in Brazil through the occurrence of three species: Telmatogeton atlanticus Oliveira, Telmatogeton eshu Oliveira and Telmatogeton nanus Oliveira, with only the adults known. Thalassomya, in turn, was recorded in the country with the description of adult male, pupa and larva of Thalassomya gutae Neubern, Silva & Trivinho-Strixino. The species T. gutae has a wide geographic distribution, being found in many locations on the northeastern coast. In this context, the present work aimed to verify whether the analyzed populations, recognized as T. gutae, belong to this species or are considered cryptic species. Thus, we analyzed six populations distributed in the northeast region, in the states of Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Alagoas and Bahia. In this way, advances were promoted in the DNA barcode extraction and amplification protocol for this species and the molecular status of the populations was defined.