Filogenia de Spongiphoridae (Insecta: Dermaptera), taxonomia de Mecomera Audinet-Serville (Sprattinae) e guia ilustrado com um novo método de armazenamento para o estudo das asas de Dermaptera

Abstract

The Dermaptera are terrestrials hemimetabolous insects, with cosmopolitan distribution. In Brazil, they are popularly known as “tesourinhas”. These animals have diverse feeding habits and have preference for narrow places, where they can always be in touch with a surface. There are around 2,200 species worldwide, out of which 540 belong to Spongiphoridae. This family is assigned to the Eudermaptera, a group of earwigs which had suffered reduction of structures from male genitalia. According to recent molecular studies, this family is phylogenetically and taxonomically poorly defined, being considered as a “catch-all” group, where the Eudermaptera species which do not have a defined position are assigned. There is no robust phylogeny based on morphological data. Due to it, the present thesis aimed to investigate the systematics of Spongiphoridae with a morphological approach. Resulting, Mecomera Audinet-Serville was revised, as well as a guide on how to stretch and preserve the wings of Dermaptera with a new method was published. This new method risen from the need of stretching the earwig wings, which have the most complex folding system among all insects. Phylogenetically, Spongiphoridae resulted as monophyletic and supporting two large subfamilies: Labiinae and Spongiphorinae. Cosmogeracini, Geracini, Pericomini and Sparattini were transferred to Labiinae, whilst Mecomerini, Homotagini and Strongylolabis were transferred to Spongiphorinae. All the assigned tribes were illustrated and had their diagnosis updated. Furthermore, new morphological synapomorphies for Eudermaptera were found.