Phryganistria
Phryganistria is a genus of stick insects belonging to the subfamily Clitumninae. It was described by the Swedish entomologist Carl Stål in 1875. Members of the genus are found only in Southeast Asia. Of the new species described in 2014, Phryganistria heusii yentuensis, which – measuring 32 cm long – is the second biggest insect known to date.[1][2] Another, Phryganistria tamdaoensis was selected in 2015 by the International Institute for Species Exploration as one of the "Top 10 New Species" for new species discovered in 2014.[3]
Phryganistria | |
---|---|
Phryganistria tamdaoensis | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Phasmatodea |
Family: | Phasmatidae |
Subfamily: | Clitumninae |
Genus: | Phryganistria Stål, 1875 |
Type species | |
Phryganistria sarmentosa Westwood, 1848 |
In May 2016, the Chinese state media Xinhua announced that a new species informally named Phryganistria chinensis was discovered in Liuzhou, China.[4] The discoverer Zhao Li, at the Insect Museum of West China, had found the specimen in 2014. The original specimen was a female and measured 62.4 centimetres (24.6 in) long.[5] It has not been formally described. In August 2017, one of the offspring attained 64 cm (25.2 inch) in length, becoming the largest insect in the world,[6] and has been listed in the Guinness World Records as the "longest insect."[7]
Species
The genus includes the following:[8]
- Phryganistria bachmaensis Ta & Hoang, 2004
- Phryganistria fruhstorferi Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1907
- Phryganistria grandis Rehn, 1906
- Phryganistria guanxiensis Chen & He, 2008
- Phryganistria heusii Hennemann & Conle, 1997
- Phryganistria heusii heusii Hennemann & Conle, 1997
- Phryganistria heusii yentuensis J. Bresseel & J Constant, 2014
- Phryganistria longzhouensis Chen & He, 2008
- Phryganistria tamdaoensis J. Bresseel & J Constant, 2014
- Phryganistria virgea (Westwood, 1848) - synonym P. sarmentosa Westwood, 1848
See also
References
- Bresseel, Joachim; Constant, Jérôme (2014). "Giant sticks from Vietnam and China, with three new taxa including the second longest insect known to date (Phasmatodea, Phasmatidae, Clitumninae, Pharnaciini)". European Journal of Taxonomy. 104: 1–38. doi:10.5852/ejt.2014.104.
- Verbeke, Reinout (27 November 2014). "New Species of Stick Insect is Second Largest Insect in the World". naturalsciences.be. Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
- "The ESF Top 10 New Species for 2015". State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
- Kate Baggaley (6 May 2016). "World's Longest Insect Is Two Feet Long".
- "World's longest insect discovered in China". www.chinadaily.com.cn. 5 May 2016. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
- "China breeds world's largest insect". www.xinhuanet.com. 8 August 2017. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
- "Bugs beyond belief! Shining the spotlight on celebrity creepy-crawlies". Guinness World Records. 2018-11-29. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
- "Phasmida Species File (Version 5.0/5.0) Phryganistria". PSF. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
External Links
Media related to Phryganistria at Wikimedia Commons