The second introduction of a non-native Embioptera to Korea via ornamental plants: Evaluating DNA barcoding to prepare for a global inflow of unfamiliar taxa

This study reports a webspinner, Aposthonia ceylonica, found in imported ornamental Tillandsia plants in greenhouse gardens in Paju and Seoul. This is the second record of a non-native Embioptera in Korea. The insects were found in the gaps between the basal leaves of the plants, and lived as a group in galleries of woven silk produced from the forelegs. The morphological characters and silk structures were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. The mitochondrial COI gene was sequenced for molecular identification, and to evaluate the validity of DNA barcoding for Embioptera. These insects can only survive and breed in greenhouse gardens because they are subtropical to tropical. However, they might ultimately settle after introduction in the Korean Peninsula if tropicalization continues.