|
Mantophasmatidae
Mantophasmatidae is a family of carnivorous wingless insects within the monotypic order Mantophasmatodea, which was discovered in Africa in 2001. Recent evidence indicates a sister group relationship with Grylloblattidae (classified in the order Grylloblattodea), and Arillo and Engel have combined the two groups into a single order, Notoptera, with Grylloblattodea and Mantophasmatodea ranked as suborders. Overview The most common vernacular name for this order is gladiators, although they also are called rock crawlers, heelwalkers, mantophasmids, and colloquially, mantos. Their modern centre of endemism is western South Africa and Namibia ( Brandberg Massif), although the modern relict population of '' Tanzaniophasma subsolana'' in Tanzania and Eocene fossils suggest a wider ancient distribution. Mantophasmatodea are wingless even as adults, making them relatively difficult to identify. They resemble a cross between praying mantises and phasmids, and molecular evidence ind ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Notoptera
Notoptera, also known as Xenonomia, is a clade of insects belonging to Polyneoptera. It contains two living groups, Mantophasmatidae (gladiators) native to southern Africa, and Grylloblattidae (ice crawlers) native to cold montane environments in the Northern Hemisphere. Both groups are wingless. History of research The name was originally coined in 1915 as an order for Grylloblattidae and largely forgotten until it was resurrected and redefined ("Notoptera Crampton ''sensu novum''") by Engel and Grimaldi in 2004 (after the discovery of living Mantophasmatidae), who recommended to give a single order that includes both the living and fossil representatives of the lineage. Terry and Whiting in 2005 independently proposed a new name, "Xenonomia", for the same lineage of insects (including the Grylloblattodea and Mantophasmatodea, treated as orders). The orders Grylloblattodea and Mantophasmatodea are sometimes ranked as suborders of a single order, Notoptera. Some authors co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kuboesphasma
''Kuboesphasma'' is a genus of insects in the family Mantophasmatidae. It is a monotypic genus consisting of the species ''Kuboesphasma compactum''. Its type locality is Kuboes, Richtersveld The Richtersveld is a desert landscape characterised by rugged kloofs and high mountains, situated in the north-western corner of South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It is full of changing scenery from flat, sandy, coastal plains, to cragg ..., South Africa. References Mantophasmatidae Monotypic insect genera Insects of South Africa {{Notoptera-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tyrannophasma Gladiator
''Tyrannophasma'' is a genus of insects in the family Mantophasmatidae. It is a monotypic genus consisting of the species ''Tyrannophasma gladiator'', which is endemic to the Brandberg Massif of central Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no .... It is the largest known species of gladiator, measuring up to 32 mm (1.3 in) in length.Culin, J.Encyclopedia Britannica References Mantophasmatidae Monotypic insect genera Insects of Namibia Endemic fauna of Namibia {{Notoptera-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minutophasma
''Minutophasma'' is a genus of insects in the family Mantophasmatidae. It is a monotypic genus consisting of the species ''Minutophasma redelinghuysense''. Its type locality is located slightly to the north of Eksteenfontein, Richtersveld The Richtersveld is a desert landscape characterised by rugged kloofs and high mountains, situated in the north-western corner of South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It is full of changing scenery from flat, sandy, coastal plains, to cragg ..., South Africa. References Mantophasmatidae Monotypic insect genera Insects of South Africa {{Notoptera-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mantophasma Zephyra
''Mantophasma zephyra'' is a species of insect in the family Mantophasmatidae. It is endemic to Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no .... References Mantophasmatidae Insects of Namibia Endemic fauna of Namibia Insects described in 2002 {{notoptera-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tanzaniophasma Subsolana
''Tanzaniophasma'' is a genus of insects in the family Mantophasmatidae. It is a monotypic genus consisting of the species ''Tanzaniophasma subsolana'', which is endemic to Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t .... References Mantophasmatidae Monotypic insect genera Insects of Tanzania Endemic fauna of Tanzania {{Notoptera-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Praying Mantis
Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They have triangular heads with bulging eyes supported on flexible necks. Their elongated bodies may or may not have wings, but all mantodeans have forelegs that are greatly enlarged and adapted for catching and gripping prey; their upright posture, while remaining stationary with forearms folded, resembling a praying posture, has led to the common name praying mantis. The closest relatives of mantises are termites and cockroaches (Blattodea), which are all within the superorder Dictyoptera. Mantises are sometimes confused with stick insects ( Phasmatodea), other elongated insects such as grasshoppers ( Orthoptera), or other more distantly related insects with raptorial forelegs such as mantisflies ( Mantispidae) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Incertae Sedis
or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is indicated by (of uncertain family), (of uncertain suborder), (of uncertain order) and similar terms. Examples * The fossil plant ''Paradinandra, Paradinandra suecica'' could not be assigned to any family, but was placed ''incertae sedis'' within the order Ericales when described in 2001. * The fossil ''Gluteus minimus (fossil), Gluteus minimus'', described in 1975, could not be assigned to any known animal phylum. The genus is therefore ''incertae sedis'' within the kingdom Animalia. * While it was unclear to which order the New World vultures (family Cathartidae) should be assigned, they were placed in Aves ''incertae sedis''. It was later agreed to place them in a separate order, Cathartiformes. * Boc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basal (evolution)
In phylogenetics, basal is the direction of the ''base'' (or root) of a rooted phylogenetic tree or cladogram. The term may be more strictly applied only to nodes adjacent to the root, or more loosely applied to nodes regarded as being close to the root. Note that extant taxa that lie on branches connecting directly to the root are not more closely related to the root than any other extant taxa. While there must always be two or more equally "basal" clades sprouting from the root of every cladogram, those clades may differ widely in taxonomic rank, species diversity, or both. If ''C'' is a basal clade within ''D'' that has the lowest rank of all basal clades within ''D'', ''C'' may be described as ''the'' basal taxon of that rank within ''D''. The concept of a ' key innovation' implies some degree of correlation between evolutionary innovation and diversification. However, such a correlation does not make a given case predicable, so ancestral characters should not be imputed to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gladiator
A gladiator ( , ) was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gladiators were volunteers who risked their lives and their legal and social standing by appearing in the arena. Most were despised as slaves, schooled under harsh conditions, socially marginalized, and segregated even in death. Irrespective of their origin, gladiators offered spectators an example of Rome's martial ethics and, in fighting or dying well, they could inspire admiration and popular acclaim. They were celebrated in high and low art, and their value as entertainers was commemorated in precious and commonplace objects throughout the Roman world. The origin of gladiatorial combat is open to debate. There is evidence of it in funeral rites during the Punic Wars of the 3rd century BC, and thereafter it rapidly became an essential feature of politics and social life in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richtersveld
The Richtersveld is a desert landscape characterised by rugged kloofs and high mountains, situated in the north-western corner of South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It is full of changing scenery from flat, sandy, coastal plains, to craggy sharp mountains of volcanic rock and the lushness of the Orange River, which forms the border with neighboring Namibia. The area ranges in altitude from sea level, to at Cornellberg. Located in the north-western side of the Northern Cape province in South Africa, the Richtersveld is regarded as the only arid biodiversity hotspot on earth and the majority of the area is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List due to its cultural values. The Nama people of Richtersveld claimed title to their traditional land and set aside this conservancy for future research and tourism. The northern part of the area was proclaimed in 1991 after 18 years of negotiations between the National Parks Board and the local Nama people who continue to live ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erongo
Erongo is one of the 14 regions of Namibia. The capital is Swakopmund. It is named after Mount Erongo, a well-known landmark in Namibia and in this area. Erongo contains the municipalities of Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, Henties Bay and Omaruru, as well as the towns Arandis, Karibib and Usakos. All the main centres within this region are connected by paved roads. The Erongo Region had a population of 150,809 in 2011. As of 2020, it had 119,784 registered voters. In the west, Erongo has a shoreline on the Atlantic Ocean. On land, it borders the following regions: * Kunene - north * Otjozondjupa - northeast * Khomas - southeast *Hardap - south Economy and infrastructure Various mining operations occur within this region at places such as Navachab and on a smaller scale at places surrounding Uis and the desert area. Karibib also has a marble industry. Walvis Bay, fully incorporated into the Erongo Region in 1994, is the principal home of Namibia's fishing industry. Walvis Bay also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
