Visual perception and the associated structural and genetic
components are highly developed in insects. However, it is
unclear how well these features are developed in ectoparasitic
insects that have secondarily reduced or lost vision. While it
is well known that fleas have reduced or completely lost their
eyes, it is unclear whether the underlying genetics associated
with vision have remained intact. We present data from a study
of the long-wavelength opsin gene sampled across a range of
mecopteran and siphonapteran taxa, which include fully visual
insects (panorpids and boreids) to species with eyes reduced or
absent (fleas). The evolution of this gene is evaluated in light
of a robust phylogeny for Mecoptera and Siphonaptera, providing
greater insight into the evolution of the opsin gene complex in
insects. Species 1: Siphonaptera (fleas) Species 2: Mecoptera
Panorpidae (scorpionflies) Species 3: Mecoptera Boreidae (snow
fleas) Back to Student Competition Ten-Minute Papers, A2,
Systematics, Morphology, and