Phylogenetic Analysis and Biogeography of the Nocturnal Hornets, Provespa (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Vespinae)

Abstract

Relationships among the three species of nocturnal hornet of the genus Provespa Ashmead, 1903 are cladistically analyzed based on adult morphological characters and mitochondrial DNA sequence data. Monophyly of Provespa is supported and the species relationships are expressed as (P. barthelemyi+(P. anomala+P. nocturna)). Provespa barthelemyi (Du Buysson, 1905) is distributed mainly in the southeastern part of the Asian continent from eastern India to Indochina, while P. nocturna Vecht, 1935 and P. anomala (Saussure, 1854) occur mainly in Sumatra, Borneo, and the southern part of the Malay Peninsula. The speciation and biogeography of Provespa are briefly discussed, with reference to a supposed vicariance event around the Isthmus of Kra.