The

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Planispectrum'' combines very small and compact species from

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

Characteristics

''Planispectrum'' is the smallest genus of the

Dataminae Datamini is the only tribe within the subfamily of the Dataminae from the order of the Phasmatodea. The representatives of this subfamily are on average not as large as those of the other two subfamilies belonging to the family of Heteropterygida ...

. The males of the previously known species reach lengths of , the females are long. In addition to the small size, the flat body and the very short antennae, which are hardly longer than the femura of the forelegs, are characteristic of the genus. In all species the antennae are shorter than the legs as a whole. The first antenna segment (scapus) is always toothed. Tubercles or teeth can be seen on the top of the head. The

pronotum The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum (ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on ea ...

is trapezoidally widened posteriorly. The

Metanotum The metathorax is the posterior of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the third pair of legs. Its principal sclerites ( exoskeletal plates) are the metanotum (dorsal), the metasternum (ventral), and the metapleuron (lateral) ...

is square. The margins of

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the cre ...

and

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

may be serrated. The meta

pleura The pulmonary pleurae (''sing.'' pleura) are the two opposing layers of serous membrane overlying the lungs and the inside of the surrounding chest walls. The inner pleura, called the visceral pleura, covers the surface of each lung and dips bet ...

have no spines. The abdominal segments are very short and wide. The

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek language, Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. Th ...

ly located subgenital plate of the female is blunt and no longer than the

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage * Dorsal co ...

y located operculum. The same is swollen and rounded. It shows a rounded lip at the end. The legs are very short and have no teeth or thorns.

Distribution area, way of life and reproduction

The distribution area of the genus extends from

South China South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...

and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

over

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula (Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

and

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

. The representatives of the genus are extremely difficult to find and live close to the ground, where they usually hide under leaves lying on the ground. Only after heavy rain do they climb into the bushes to avoid the water.

Taxonomy

As early as 1906,

Josef Redtenbacher Josef Redtenbacher (March 13, 1810 – March 5, 1870) was an Austrian chemist born in Kirchdorf an der Krems, Upper Austria. He was a brother to entomologist Ludwig Redtenbacher (1814–1876). He studied medicine and botany at the University ...

described the first two species of the species listed today in ''Planispectrum'' in a genus specially established for this with ''Platymorpha cochinchinensis'' and ''Platymorpha bengalensis''. Since '' Platymorpha'' is a genus of the

leaf beetles The insects of the beetle family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles, and include over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making up one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle ...

(Chrysomelidae) already described in 1888,

James Abram Garfield Rehn James Abram Garfield Rehn (October 26, 1881 – January 25, 1965) was an American entomologist who was a specialist on the New World Orthoptera. He worked at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, making several collection expeditions aro ...

and his son

John William Holman Rehn John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

described the genus in 1939 new as ''Planispectrum''. In relation to

Phasmatodea The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida, Phasmatoptera or Spectra) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walking sticks, stick animals, or bug sticks. They are also occasionally referred to as ...

, ''Platymorpha'' is therefore a

senior synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnae ...

to ''Planispectrum''. As

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

they set '' Planispectrum cochinchinensis''. Also the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

Boris Uvarov Sir Boris Petrovitch Uvarov (3 November 1886 – 18 March 1970) was a Russian-British entomologist best known for his work on the biology and ecology of locusts. He has been called the father of acridology. Biography Boris Petrovitch Uvarov was ...

noticed the synonymy of ''Platymorpha''. Unaware of the renaming by Rehn and Rehn, he renamed the genus to ''Platyphasma'' in 1940. This name is therefore a junior synonym for the older name ''Planispectrum''. A species also described by Redtenbacher in 1906 as ''Datames pusillus'' was transferred to the genus ''Planispectrum'' by

Oliver Zompro Oliver Zompro is a German biologist who is credited with the discovery in 2002 of a new suborder of carnivorous African insects, Mantophasmatodea or "gladiators", which was originally considered to be a new insect order but was later relegated to ...

in 2004. Zompro also described three other species. Two of them based on relatively freshly collected material and the third ('' Planispectrum javanense'') after examining the type material of '' Planispectrum bengalensis'' based on a

paralectotype In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes th ...

. The last species to be described was '' Planispectrum hainanensis'' in 2008, initially in the genus ''

Pylaemenes In Greek mythology, Pylaemenes (Ancient Greek: Πυλαιμένης) may refer to two distinct characters: * Pylaemenes, king of the Eneti tribe of Paphlagonia. He claimed to be related to Priam through Phineus, as the latter's daughter Olizone ...

''. It was transferred to ''Planispectrum'' by George Ho Wai-Chun in 2013. Valid species are: * '' Planispectrum bakiensis'' Zompro, 1998 * '' Planispectrum bengalense'' ( Redtenbacher, 1906) * '' Planispectrum cochinchinensis'' (Redtenbacher, 1906) * '' Planispectrum hainanensis'' ( Chen & He, 2008) * '' Planispectrum hongkongense'' Zompro, 2004 * '' Planispectrum javanense'' Zompro, 2004 * '' Planispectrum pusillus'' (Redtenbacher, 1906) In their work on the radiation and relationships within the Heteropterygidae, which was mainly based on

genetic analysis Genetic analysis is the overall process of studying and researching in fields of science that involve genetics and molecular biology. There are a number of applications that are developed from this research, and these are also considered parts of ...

and was published in 2021,

Sarah Bank Sarah (born Sarai) is a Patriarchs (Bible)#Matriarchs, biblical matriarch and Prophet, prophetess, a major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her ...

et al References Notes References Further reading

* * {{Latin phrases Lists of Latin phrases, E ...

also examined a species of this genus with ''Planispectrum bengalensis''. In the subfamily Dataminae, the genus forms a

sister group In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

with a

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

formed by the genera ''Pylaemenes'' and ''

Orestes In Greek mythology, Orestes or Orestis (; grc-gre, Ὀρέστης ) was the son of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, and the brother of Electra. He is the subject of several Ancient Greek plays and of various myths connected with his madness and ...

''.

In captivity

Since 2020, a

parthenogenetic Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek grc, παρθένος, translit=parthénos, lit=virgin, label=none + grc, γένεσις, translit=génesis, lit=creation, label=none) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and development ...

stock of ''Planispectrum hongkongense'' has been in culture as the first representative of the genus in the

terrariums A vivarium (Latin, literally for "place of life"; plural: ''vivaria'' or ''vivariums'') is an area, usually enclosed, for keeping and raising animals or plants for observation or research. Water-based vivaria may have open tops providing they a ...

of European enthusiasts. This traces back to a female collected in the Southern District of

on November 20, 2019. The stock is referred to as ''Planispectrum hongkongense'' '

Tai Tam Tai Tam or ''Tytam'' is an area in Southern District on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Tai Tam means a ''big pool'' in the Chinese language which illustrates a triangular bay, namely Tai Tam Bay between Stanley Peninsula, D'Aguilar Peak ...

' after its exact location and is considered easy to keep and breed.

References

Brock, P. D.; Büscher, T. H. & Baker, E. W.br>Phasmida Species File Online
Version 5.0/5.0 (accessdate 16 June 2021) Zompro, O. (2004). Revision of the genera of the Areolatae, including the status of Timema and Agathemera (Insecta, Phasmatodea), Goecke & Evers, Keltern-Weiler, pp. 218–219 & 227–240, Seow-Choen, F. (2018). A Taxonomic Guide to the Stick Insects of Sumatra Vol. 1, Natural History Publications (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd., Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, p. 591, Seow-Choen, F. (2017). A Taxonomic Guide to the Stick Insects of Singapore, Natural History Publications (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd., Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, p. 39, Bragg, P. E. (2001). Phasmids of Borneo, Natural History Publikations (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd., Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, pp. 124 & 180–183, Rehn, J. A. G. & Rehn, J. W. H. (1939)
Proceedings of The Academy of Natural Sciences (Vol. 90, 1938)
Philadelphia, p. 484. Seow-Choen, F. (2005). Phasmids of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, Natural History Publikations (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd., Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, p. 104, Redtenbacher, J. (1906)
Die Insektenfamilie der Phasmiden. Vol. 1. Phasmidae Areolatae
Verlag Wilhelm Engelmann, Leipzig, pp. 46–47 & 52–53 Seow-Choen, F. (2016). A Taxonomic Guide to the Stick Insects of Borneo'', Natural History Publikations (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd., Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, pp. 392–396, Ho Wai-Chun, G. (2013). Zootaxa 3669 (3
Contribution to the knowledge of Chinese Phasmatodea II: Review of the Dataminae Rehn & Rehn, 1939 (Phasmatodea: Heteropterygidae) of China, with descriptions of one new genus and four new species
Magnolia Press, p. 211, Bank, S.; Buckley, T. R.; Büscher, T. H.; Bresseel, J.; Constant, J.; de Haan, M.; Dittmar, D.; Dräger, H.; Kahar, R. S.; Kang, A.; Kneubühler, B.; Langton-Myers, S. & Bradler, S. (2021)
Reconstructing the nonadaptive radiation of an ancient lineage of ground-dwelling stick insects (Phasmatodea: Heteropterygidae)
''Systematic Entomology'', DOI: 10.1111/syen.12472

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q1237065 Phasmatodea genera Phasmatodea of Asia