Mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variation and wing geometric morphometrics among Haematobia exigua (Diptera: Muscidae) populations in Thailand
- 1Department of Pre-Clinic and Applied Animal Science, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom, 73170, Thailand
- 2The Monitoring and Surveillance Center for Zoonotic Diseases in Wildlife and Exotic Animals (MoZWE), Faculty of Veterinary Science, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom, 73170, Thailand
- 3Department of Public Health and Health Promotion, College of Allied Health Sciences, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Samut Songkhram, 75000, Thailand
Abstract
The buffalo fly, Haematobia exigua (Diptera: Muscidae), is an obligate blood-feeding ectoparasite of livestock that adversely affects animal health and productivity. This study combined mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) sequence analysis and wing geometric morphometrics to investigate genetic differentiation and morphological variation among six H. exigua populations sampled from different regions of Thailand. Analysis of 64 cytb sequences identified 19 haplotypes, with overall haplotype diversity of 0.725 ± 0.060, nucleotide diversity of 0.00222 ± 0.00032, and an average number of nucleotide differences of 1.317. The median-joining haplotype network exhibited a partially star-like pattern, while the significantly negative neutrality test results for the total dataset indicated an excess of low-frequency variants, a pattern consistent with possible demographic expansion. AMOVA revealed that most genetic variation occurred within populations, with limited variation among populations. The overall FST value was low but significant (FST = 0.037, P < 0.05), suggesting weak genetic differentiation among H. exigua populations. Wing geometric morphometrics also revealed significant variation among the sampled populations. Pairwise Mahalanobis distances showed significant differences in wing shape among all population pairs (P < 0.05). These findings indicate limited mitochondrial differentiation but clear wing-shape variation among the sampled populations. The combined use of genetic and morphometric approaches provides complementary population-level information and establishes a baseline for future studies on the ecology, dispersal, and management of H. exigua in Thailand.
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BibTeX
@article{changbunjong2026mitochondrial,
title = {{Mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variation and wing geometric morphometrics among Haematobia exigua (Diptera: Muscidae) populations in Thailand}},
author = {Tanasak Changbunjong and Thekhawet Weluwanarak and Sedthapong Laojun and Tanawat Chaiphongpachara},
journal = {Current Research in Parasitology \& Vector-borne Diseases},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.crpvbd.2026.100446},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crpvbd.2026.100446},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence variation and wing geometric morphometrics among Haematobia exigua (Diptera: Muscidae) populations in Thailand
AU - Tanasak Changbunjong
AU - Thekhawet Weluwanarak
AU - Sedthapong Laojun
AU - Tanawat Chaiphongpachara
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/09
JO - Current Research in Parasitology & Vector-borne Diseases
DO - 10.1016/j.crpvbd.2026.100446
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crpvbd.2026.100446
AB - The buffalo fly, Haematobia exigua (Diptera: Muscidae), is an obligate blood-feeding ectoparasite of livestock that adversely affects animal health and productivity. This study combined mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) sequence analysis and wing geometric morphometrics to investigate genetic differentiation and morphological variation among six H. exigua populations sampled from different regions of Thailand. Analysis of 64 cytb sequences identified 19 haplotypes, with overall haplotype diversity of 0.725 ± 0.060, nucleotide diversity of 0.00222 ± 0.00032, and an average number of nucleotide differences of 1.317. The median-joining haplotype network exhibited a partially star-like pattern, while the significantly negative neutrality test results for the total dataset indicated an excess of low-frequency variants, a pattern consistent with possible demographic expansion. AMOVA revealed that most genetic variation occurred within populations, with limited variation among populations. The overall FST value was low but significant (FST = 0.037, P < 0.05), suggesting weak genetic differentiation among H. exigua populations. Wing geometric morphometrics also revealed significant variation among the sampled populations. Pairwise Mahalanobis distances showed significant differences in wing shape among all population pairs (P < 0.05). These findings indicate limited mitochondrial differentiation but clear wing-shape variation among the sampled populations. The combined use of genetic and morphometric approaches provides complementary population-level information and establishes a baseline for future studies on the ecology, dispersal, and management of H. exigua in Thailand.
SN - 2667-114X
ER -