Aploploides Rehn & Hebard, 1938

Frank H. Hennemann, Oskar V. Conle & Daniel E. Perez-Gelabert, 2016, Studies on Neotropical Phasmatodea XVI: Revision of Haplopodini Günther, 1953 (rev. stat.), with notes on the subfamily Cladomorphinae Bradley & Galil, 1977 and the descriptions of a new tribe, four new genera and nine new species (Phasmatodea: “ Anareolatae ”: Phasmatidae: Cladomorphinae), Zootaxa 4128 (1), pp. 1-211 : 37-39

5.1. Genus Aploploides Rehn & Hebard, 1938

Type-species: Aploploides stenocephalum Rehn & Hebard, 1938: 49 , by original designation of Rehn & Hebard, 1938: 49.

Aploploides Rehn & Hebard, 1938: 49 .

Bradley & Galil, 1977: 188. Moxey, 1972: 54 (in litt.). Bragg, 2001: 628.

Zompro, 2004: 305.

Otte & Brock, 2005: 49.

Description: ♀♀, ♂♂ ( Figs. 53–54 ). Rather small, elongate and slender Haplopodini (body lengths: ♂♂ 73.0–78.0 mm, ♀♀ 87.6–95.0 mm), ♂♂ with fully developed alae, ♀♀ apterous. Body subcylindrical with entire surface smooth and shiny (except for very minute granules on the vertex, pronotum and along lateral margins of the mesonotum). General colouration greenish. Head elongate, 2x longer than wide, vertex flat and smooth; cheaks gently widened ( Fig. 58 ). Eyes small, subcircular. Antennae filiform, longer than head and complete thorax combined in ♂♂, shorter than head, pro and mesonotum combined in ♀♀. Scapus dorsoventrally compressed, pedicellus subcylindrical. Pronotum slightly shorter and narrower than head, rectangular. Mesothorax elongate, about 1.5x longer than head and pronotum combined. Mesonotum parallel-sided and with a fine longitudinal median carina. Mesosternum simple. Metanotum rectangular. Meso- and metapleurae unarmed. Tegmina of ♂♂ small and scale-like, alae reaching about half way along tergum VI. Anal region transparent. Median segment rectangular and slightly longer than metanotum. Abdomen elongate. Segments II–VI of ♂♂ parallel-sided, of equal width and about 3x longer than wide; of ♀♀ just slightly longer than wide. Segment VII of ♀♀ longer than previous and slightly narrowing towards the posterior, VIII–X shorter than previous and tapering to apex. Sternum VII of ♀♀ with a faint praeopercular organ, formed by a median tubercle close to posterior margin. Anal segment of ♂♂ with a faint posteromedian indentation, of ♀♀ bilobate. Epiproct very small, triangular. Cerci slender, elongate, very weakly incurving and tapered towards the apex ( Figs. 55–56 ). Poculum of ♂♂ indistinct and scooplike, just reaching posterior margin of tergum IX ( Fig. 57 ), posterior with a slight median indentation. Vomer broadly triangular, somewhat narrowed in apical half and with a short and blunt terminal hook ( Fig. 344 ). Subgenital plate of ♀♀ elongate, keeled and extending beyond apex of abdomen by about 2/5 of its total length, apex slightly rounded ( Figs. 55–56 ). Legs of moderate length in ♂♂, and comparatively short in ♀♀ the profemora being shorter than the mesonotum and hind legs (incuding tarsi) reaching to posterior of tergum VI. Profemora strongly compressed and curved basally, with the medioventral carina slightly displaced towards anteroventral carina. Medioventral carina of meso- and metafemora minutely spinulose, anteroventralcarina bispinose subapically. Basitarsi short, at most as long as combined length of following two tarsomeres, simple. Eggs unknown.

Differentiation: Easily distinguished from all other genera of Haplopodini by the following characters: head elongate 2x longer than wide vertex flat and smooth; antennae of ♀♀ shorter than head and thorax combined; body surface entirely smooth and glabrous (except for very minute granules on the vertex, pronotum and along lateral margins of the mesonotum); legs very weakly armed; ♀♀ apterous.

The lack of wings in ♀♀ is shared with the Cuban Venupherodes n. gen. and Jamaican Paracranidium Brock, 1998 , but the first genus differs at once by the globose and bi-cornute head, and the latter by the triangular crosssection of the body and prominent, semicircularly raised median keel of the mesonotum.

Distribution ( Fig. 374 ): Northwest Cuba (Pinar del Rio Province), endemic.

Species included:

1. Aploploides stenocephalum Rehn & Hebard, 1938: 49 , pl. 4: 18–21 (♂, ♀).

Figures

FIGURES 53 – 58. Aploploides stenocephalum Rehn & Hebard, 1938. 53. ♀ PT: NW-Cuba, Pinar del Rio [ANSP]; 54. ♂ PT: NW-Cuba, Pinar del Rio [ANSP]; 55. ♀ apex of abdomen, lateral view; 56. ♀ apex of abdomen (dorsal view); 57. ♂ apex of abdomen (lateral view); 58. ♀ PT head in lateral view: Cuba, Pinar del Rio [ANSP].

FIGURES 342 – 348. Ventral view of abdominal sternum VII of ♀♀ showing the praeopercular organ. 342. Haplopus sobrinus n. sp. ♀ HT: Cuba, Camagüey [ANSP]; 343. Parhaplopus navarroi n. gen., n. sp. ♀ PT: Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo Province, Santo Domingo [USNM]; 344. Parhaplopus cubensis (Saussure, 1868) n. gen., n. comb. ♀: Cuba, Havana [MNHN]; 345. Diapherodes venustula (Audinet-Serville, 1838) n. gen., n. comb. ♀: captive reared from NW-Cuba, Pinar del Rio [coll. FH, No. 0599 - 3]; 346. Diapherodes angulata (Fabricius, 1793) ♀ NT: Guadeloupe [MNHN]; 347. Diapherodes dominicae Rehn & Hebard, 1938 ♀ HT: Dominica [ANSP]; 348. Diapherodes gigantea gigantea (Gmélin, 1789) ♀: captive reared from Grenada [coll. FH, No. 0359 - 1].

FIGURES 373 – 374. Maps. 373. Map of the West Indies showing the principle islands; 374. Known distribution of Aploploides Rehn & Rehn, 1938 [green] and Venupherodes n. gen. [red].