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ViewAttendees 5

Section Symposium

Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity

Life Abounds in the Great Smoky Mountains: The 25-year All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory Continues!

Using DNA barcoding to identify high priority taxa (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Tuesday, November 7, 2023
10:00 AM – 10:15 AM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Chesapeake G-H
In-Person
The All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) of Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) seeks to document every species of living thing in the park. This effort is now over 20 years old, yet some taxa remain virtually untouched by taxonomists. Such “high priority” taxa include the hyper-diverse parasitoid wasp family Ichneumonidae. Despite the positive and multifaceted effects ichneumonids have on their environment, such as effectively limiting populations of agricultural pests and being markers for ecosystem health, only a small percentage of those collected in the park have been identified to species—due mostly to their complex morphology and overwhelming diversity. To test the effectiveness of barcoding 20+ year-old specimens of Ichneumonidae and thereby document new species records in GSMNP, hundreds of wasp specimens from Andrew’s Bald collected from April 2001–May 2002 were sorted to morphospecies by undergraduate students. Ninety-five representative specimens were sent to the Canadian Center for DNA Barcoding where two sub-fragments of COI were amplified and assembled which increases the success rate of barcoding old samples. Of the 95 barcodes attempted, 84 were successful. Of these, 46 were matched with a species name in the Barcode of Life Database. Among these successful barcodes were at least 30 new species records for the park. These exciting results contribute significantly to the ATBI by adding new park records for a high priority taxon (Ichneumonidae) and demonstrate the effectiveness of applying DNA barcoding to samples in long-term storage or those lacking immediate taxonomic expertise.