Phylogeny and classification of the tribe Culicini
Culex sp. Mosquito
The objective of this research is to produce a testable phylogeny on which the classification Culicini can be based.
Culicini is a diverse group, including 793 species classified in four genera:
- Culex (cosmopolitan, 766 species placed in 26 subgenera)
- Deinocerites (Neotropical, 18 species)
- Galindomyia (Neotropical, 1 species)
- Lutzia (absent from the western Palaearctic and Nearctic regions, 8 species)
Study of generic-level relationships
Preliminary results provide consistently high support for the tribe, the four genera and all but three of the 26 subgenera of the large, cosmopolitan and medically important genus Culex
Development of a much more comprehensive data set to further explain relationships is currently underway.