New Pest Response Guidelines - aphis - US Department of Agriculture

Identification
Dendrolimus Species
Male genitalia are the most important morphological character used to
distinguish between the PTL and SSM. Detailed description was presented by
Mikkola and Stahls (2008) including keys for the identification of Palearctic
species of the genus Dendrolimus. For proper identification, the scales and the
8 th ventral sclerite of the male abdomen are removed to expose the genitalia. In
the Siberian silk moth, five appendages are clearly visible, one large birdbill
process (dagger-like structure), two erected appendages termed valve and two
additional appendages located to the side of the birdbill process named harpe
extend to about two third the length of the process (Baranchikov et al., 2007;
Mikkola and Stahls, 2008)(Figure 3-15 on page -18). In the pine-tree lappet,
the harpe is considerably reduced to about one third the length of the birdbill
process, or is lacking, giving the impression that only three appendages are
visible (Mikkola and Stahls, 2008)(Figure 3-15 on page 3-18).
Figure 3-15 Morphological structures of the genitalia of (a) Dendrolimus pini
and (b) D. sibiricus (Mikkola and Ståhls 2008).
Molecular Identification
Molecular identification of Dendrolimus species, including PTL, has utilized
the polymorphisms found at the sequences from the mitochondrial
Cytochrome Oxidase I gene (COI) and the nuclear Internal Transcribed Spacer
gene region (ITS2) (Mikkola and Stahls, 2008) as well as microsatellite
markers (Moore, 2010). Detailed protocols for the analysis and primer
sequences used to amplify the COI and the ITS2 DNA fragments can be found
in Mikkola and Stahl (2008).
3-18 Dendrolimus Pine Moths 12/2012-01