LABIDURIDAE

Popham, Edward J., 2000, The geographical distribution of the Dermaptera (Insecta) with reference to continental drift, Journal of Natural History 34 (10), pp. 2007-2027 : 2014-2016

LABIDURIDAE

( Map 6 )

Of the 74 species of this family, no less than 48 (65%) occur in the Oriental Region (table 5). There are three species in South America and nine in Africa. Comparison with the distributions of other dermapteran families suggests that the Labiduridae arose in North Africa and then spread eastwards into Africa and India, where a secondary evolutionary centre developed enabling this family to colonise the East Indies, New Guinea and northern Australia. If this is so, then the occurrence few species in South America represents a westward spread of this family from centre of evolution before the end of the Jurassic.

Figure 3 has been constructed using Steinmann’s (1974) arrangement of the subfamilies and points to an African origin of this family. In this ®gure occurrence subfamilies east of India have not been used to determine the primary evolutionary centre of this family.

2016

Figures

MAP 6. Distribution of the Labiduridae.

FIG. 3. A possible tree for the subfamilies of the Labiduridae.