Phasmatodea (Arthropoda, Insecta) in Brazil: Status, New Record, and Proposal for Using Molecular Tools to Assist in Species Identification

Abstract

Phasmatodea (Arthropoda, Insecta) comprises phytophagous insects, popularly known as stick bugs because most of them resemble dry branches. Currently, more than 3000 species are known, the majority of which can be found in tropical regions of the world. In Brazil, it is estimated that there are approximately 200 species, but these numbers may not truly reflect the group's richness. A high degree of intraspecific polymorphism, a low number of specimens sampled, a shortage of specialized literature, and having only a small number of experts have amplified the difficulties in studying this order. Therefore, this study aims to present a historical survey of the Phasmatodea studies that have been conducted in Brazil thus far, indicating gaps in knowledge and discussing perspectives to expand understanding within this group. Furthermore, to the best our knowledge, the molecular characterization of the cytochrome oxidase subunit I gene of mitochondrial DNA of two species of phasmids found in Brazil, Cladomorphus phyllinus Gray, 1835, and Pseudophasma missionum Piza, 1981, is presented for the first time. In addition, this study records for the first time the occurrence of P. missionum in Brazilian territory.

Arumatia, a new genus of Diapheromerinae stick insects (Insecta, Phasmatodea) from Brazil, with description of five new species and reassessment of species misplaced in Australian genera

“…Arumatia gen. nov. is not only the third genus of this group recorded for non-Amazonian Brazil but the first Diapheromerinae known to occur in the Cerrado. Therefore, Arumatia gen. nov., representing a new genus and containing both new and misplaced species described a long time ago, exemplifies the still poor knowledge on Brazilian (and Neotropical) Phasmatodea as a whole, which fortunately has been receiving much more attention and efforts lately (Madeira-Ott et al 2020). Furthermore, it illustrates that several Brazilian environments are still understudied, especially regarding groups lacking taxonomists as is the case for phasmids.…”

“…Neotropical stick insects are generally poorly studied: many species are known only from their original descriptions and relatively few have been covered in recent taxonomic works (see, e.g., Gutiérrez-Valencia et al 2017;Conle et al 2020;Crispino et al 2020;Madeira-Ott et al 2020;Chiquetto-Machado & Cancello 2021;Ghirotto 2021;Chiquetto-Machado et al 2022). Compared to the fauna of other continents, Neotropical phasmids are underrepresented in phylogenetic analyses, reflecting the lack of basic scientific work concerning them (Robertson et al 2018;Simon et al 2019).…”

Predation strategies of Harpactor angulosus (Lepeletier & Serville, 1825) (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) on Cladomorphus phyllinus Gray, 1835 (Phasmatodea: Phasmatidae) in captivity

“…This number of species is expected to be underestimated, representing less than half of the diversity of the Brazilian Phasmatodea (Zompro 2012) as a consequence of a small number of researchers studying stick insects in Brazil. The state of art of this group in the country was recently reviewed by Madeira-Ott et al (2020) and new initiatives have been raising efforts in order to broaden the knowledge of the Brazilian Phasmatodea, especially regarding taxonomy, morphology and biology (Chiquetto-Machado 2018;Heleodoro andRafael 2019, 2020;Chiquetto-Machado et al 2020Crispino et al 2020;Chiquetto-Machado and Cancello 2021;Ghirotto 2021;Heleodoro 2022).…”

Longevity, fertility, and average eggs viability of parthenogenetic females of Cladomorphus phyllinus Gray (Phasmatodea - Phasmatidae)

“…Stick insects, from the order Phasmatodea, are the largest Brazilian insects, which present multiple forms of morphological and behavioral camouflage like sticks and leaves, including 3,423 species, of which 852 occur in the neotropical region, with 224 being recorded in Brazil (Brock et al 2021;crispino et al 2021). Due to the few Brazilian specialists in Phasmatodea, studies related to taxonomy, biology, ecology, and evolution have grown and new initiatives have emerged to contribute to the knowledge of this order and its state of the art (costa et al 2019;chiquetto-Machado et al 2020;heleodoro & rafael 2020, 2021Madeira-ott et al 2020;chiquetto-Machado & cancello 2021;Ghirotto 2021;.…”