Entomologische Abhandlungen 63 (1–2): 51–76 © Museum für Tierkunde Dresden, ISSN 0373-8981, 23.06.200651 The cervical sclerites of Mantodea discussed in the context of dic - tyop teran phylogeny (Insecta: Dictyoptera) FRANK WIELAND Zoologisches Institut und Zoologisches Museum, Abt. für Morphologie, Systematik und Evolutionsbiologie, Georg-August- Universität, Berliner Str. 28, 37073 Göttingen, Germany [
[email protected]] Abstract. The ventral cervical sclerites, lateral cervical sclerites, and intercervical sclerites of 30 mantodean, 7 “blattarian”, and 4 isopteran species have been studied. This leads to new insights into the dictyopteran ground plan, autapomorphies for several taxa, and the evolution of the mantodean cervical region. It remains unclear if a lack or the presence of one or two ventral cervical sclerites (vcs) has to be assumed for the dictyopteran ground plan. The state of reduction of the vcs in Phyllocrania and Gongylus, however, supports a close relationship of Empusidae and certain Hymenopodidae. A weak, setae-bearing sclerite (sbs) posterior to the ventral cervical sclerites in Cryptocercus is probably autapomorphic. A transverse position of the intercervical sclerites (ics) is a ground plan feature of Dictyoptera and probably autapomorphic for the group. The presence of a groove (lcvg) on the lateral cervical sclerites is also hypothesized as autapomorphic for Dictyoptera with a convergent loss or partial reduction in several “Blattaria” lineages, in Isoptera, and in Metallyticus. A midventral fusion of the intercervical sclerites (ics) has probably taken place in the stem species of Mantoidea with a secondary separation in Theopompella, Ameles and Empusa. Two equally parsimonious hypotheses have been found for the evolution of the torus intercervicalis (ticv) with either a single gain in the ground plan of Mantodea except Mantoida and several losses within the group, or three separate gains in Chaeteessa, Metallyticus and the stem-species of Mantoidea with several losses within the latter.