Molecular identification of three aphid parasitoids, Aphidius areolatus, A. absinthii, and A. uzbekistanicus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands in Korea

The Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands are located in the East Sea of Korea and have a unique ecosystem. We collected Aphidiinae mummies from the Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands in 2018. Three species of parasitoids in the genus Aphidius Nees, A. absinthii Marshall, A. areolatus Ashmead, and A. uzbekistanicus Luzhetzki, were identified using morphological characteristics and molecular techniques from the mummies of three aphid host species Macrosiphoniella formosartemisiae Takahashi, Capitophorus elaeagni (Del Guercio), and Aphis rumicis Linnaeus, respectively. The comparison of the nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I in the GenBank database revealed that A. uzbekistanicus was 100% identical to 135 sequences of the species from Asian, American, and European countries and a one-nucleotide variation from a Serbian specimen. Aphidius absinthii was 100% identical to a Japanese specimen of the species and 0.39% variable from the Serbian specimen. However, the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequence of A. areolatus did not match in the database and was first reported from this study. Our phylogenetic analysis of 31 Aphidius and 3 Euaphidius species listed in the GenBank database indicated a monophyletic taxon within 12.72% variation. This study is the first report of the geographic distribution of three Aphidius species in the Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands of Korea. •Aphidiinae mummies were collected from the Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands in 2018.•Host aphids and enclosed parasitic wasps were identified using morphological and molecular techniques.•Three parasitoid species in the genus Aphidius, A. absinthii, A. areolatus, and A. uzbekistanicus, were identified from three aphid host species Macrosiphoniella formosartemisiae, Capitophorus elaeagni, and Aphis rumicis, respectively.•We provide new information of the distribution of three Aphidius species in the Ulleungdo and Dokdo Islands of Korea.