Data from: Cryptic diversity and gene flow among three African agricultural pests: Ceratitis rosa, Ceratitis fasciventris and Ceratitis anonae (Diptera, Tephritidae)

The ‘Ceratitis FAR complex’ is a species complex of African fruit flies
(Diptera, Tephritidae) including the major agricultural pest Ceratitis
rosa and the morphologically similar Ceratitis fasciventris and Ceratitis
anonae. To resolve their intra- and interspecific genetic relationships
and to estimate gene flow within this complex, we surveyed allelic
variation at 16 microsatellite loci in 27 African populations of the three
morphospecies. Interpopulation genetic distances and individual Bayesian
assignments distinguished five genotypic clusters: two involving C. rosa
(R1, R2; that may occur in sympatry), two involving C. fasciventris (F1,
F2; with parapatric distributions) and one involving C. anonae (A). Intra-
and interspecific patterns of genetic differentiation were not
hierarchically structured and genetic differentiation between conspecific
clusters (F1–F2 and R1–R2) was higher or comparable with differentiation
between heterospecific clusters (e.g. F1-A or R2-A). In some cases, gene
flow estimates among morphospecies or among heterospecific genotypic
clusters were significantly different from zero, showing the lack of
reproductive isolation. Genetic differentiation between genotypic clusters
was partly supported by morphological differences observed a posteriori in
male secondary sexual characters. These results suggest important
revisions to current models of ecological niche requirements and invasion
risk of the major agricultural pest C. rosa and provide a basis for a
taxonomic re-interpretation of the FAR complex.