Work

Three complete mitochondrial genomes of the genus Mudaria (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) with phylogenetic significance

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Mudaria Moore, 1893 (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae), the common durian-fruit borers, are economically devastating pests of tropical crops (such as Durio zibethinus , Ceiba pentandra , Bombax spp.), yet their phylogenetic position has long been controversial due to morphological ambiguities. In this study, we sequenced and annotated three complete mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) of this genus: Mudaria szalkayjozsefi (15,325 bp), Mudaria bogdanpopescui (15,391 bp), and Mudaria stahlgretschae (15,396 bp). All these mitogenomes exhibit the conserved ancestral lepidopteran gene order of 37 genes and display a profound A+T compositional bias (>80%). Comparative mitogenomic analyses revealed highly conserved relative synonymous codon usage and typical invertebrate mitochondrial features, alongside notable interspecific variation in the start codon of the atp8 gene (165/159/165 bp). To clarify the phylogenetic relationships of Mudaria among Noctuidae, a robust macro-scale maximum-likelihood phylogenetic framework was reconstructed using a concatenated super-matrix (13 protein-coding genes and two rRNA genes) from 144 species, alongside an expanded fine-scale cox1 tree of 249 species. Crucially, our super-matrix unambiguously placed the Mudaria clade as an independent basal lineage of Noctuidae, positioned as the sister group to the subfamily Acontiinae. Concurrently, the fine-scale cox1 tree pinpointed its precise evolutionary neighborhood, resolving Mudaria as the immediate sister group to the Acontiine lineage comprising Parerastria castaneata and Lacistophanes hackeri . Although a formal subfamilial reassignment remains tentative pending comprehensive morphological validation, these newly curated genomic and barcode references provide critical high-precision anchors for international quarantine interception and the refinement of integrated pest management strategies against these destructive cryptic pests.

Source: ZooKeys

DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1296.206586