Superfamily Membracoidea (Homoptera: Auchenorrhyncha). II. Cladistic analysis and conclusions

Abstract

Homologies among traditional morphological characters in the Membracoidea (sensu futo ) are reassessed and the phylogenetic relationships among higher membracoid taxa are explored, incorporating new morphological evidence from nymphs and adults. Weighted and unweighted parsimony analyses of a matrix of sixty-three characters and thirty-nine OTUs representing the families Aetalionidae, Cicadellidae, Melizoderidae and Membracidae, and an outgroup (superfamily Cercopoidea) yielded various topologies that were largely congruent but presented alternative hypotheses of relationships among the Membracidae. These analyses indicate that the superfamily consists of the following clades: Cicadellidae + (Melizoderidae + (Aetalionidae + Membracidae)). The family Membracidae, traditionally characterized by the presence of a posterior pronotal process, apparently gave rise to Nicomia StZl and other genera that lack this process.

Phylogeny of the Major Lineages of Membracoidea (Insecta: Hemiptera: Cicadomorpha) Based on 28S rDNA Sequences

“…The monophyly of Membracoidea is well supported by morphological evidence (Hamilton, 1983(Hamilton, , 1999Shcherbakov, 1992Shcherbakov, , 1996Dietrich and Deitz, 1993), but the phylogenetic status of some membracoid families remains controversial and relationships among subfamilies and tribes remain very poorly understood. Traditionally, Cicadellidae have been regarded as the sister group of a lineage comprising the three treehopper families (e.g., Strü mpel, 1972;Evans, 1977), and a recent morphology-based cladistic analysis provided some support for this relationship .…”

Phylogeny of the Treehoppers (Insecta: Hemiptera: Membracidae): Evidence from Two Nuclear Genes

“…Hypothesized phylogeny of the superfamily Membracoidea based on the morphological evidence of Dietrich and Deitz (1993). 318 portions of the specimens (i.e., heads, pronota, wings, and legs) were given voucher numbers (Table 1) and are stored at Ϫ80°C in 95-100% ethanol in the Department of Entomology at North Carolina State University, as part of the NCSU Insect Collection Genome Bank.…”

“…Phylogenetic relationships based on morphological evidence have been proposed for the higher categories of, and certain lineages within, Membracidae (Sakakibara, 1979;Deitz, 1991, 1993;Dietrich and McKamey, 1995;McKamey and Deitz, 1996). Dietrich and Deitz (1993) established the monophyly of Membracidae and their sister group relationship to Aetalionidae based on morphological evidence (Fig. 1).…”

“…Dietrich and Deitz (1993) estimated relationships among the membracoid families based on morphological evidence (Fig. 1).…”

Revision of the Neotropical treehopper genus Tolania (Hemiptera, Membracidae)

“…The terminology used follows that of DEITZ (1975), DIETRICH & DEITZ (1993), and DIETRICH ET AL. (2001).…”