The Euphasmatodea,Phasmida Species File: suborder Euphasmatodea (Version 5.0/5.0; retrieved 27 May 2021)
/ref> also known by its junior synonym Verophasmatodea is a

suborder Order () is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and recognized ...

of the

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

, which contains the vast majority of the

extant Extant or Least-concern species, least concern is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Exta ...

species of stick and leaf insects, excluding the

Timematodea Timematodea is a small suborder of stick insects, believed to be the earliest diverging living branch of the group. It contains only one living genus, '' Timema,'' known from the western United States, as well as two fossil genera, '' Granosicorp ...

. The oldest record of Euphasmatodea is '' Araripephasma'' from the

Crato Formation The Crato Formation is a geologic formation (stratigraphy), formation of Early Cretaceous (Aptian) age in northeastern Brazil's Araripe Basin. It is an important Lagerstätten, Lagerstätte (undisturbed fossil accumulation) for palaeontology, pa ...

of Brazil, dating to the

Aptian The Aptian is an age (geology), age in the geologic timescale or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early or Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), S ...

stage of the Early Cretaceous.

Superfamilies and families

The suborder Euphasmatodea was previously divided into two infraorders: the Areolatae and Anareolatae, based on the presence or absence of an "areola": a small ring of colour or gap in wing margin - see the

Glossary of entomology terms This glossary of entomology describes terms used in the formal study of insect species by entomology, entomologists. A–C A synthetic chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticide, toxic to vertebr ...

. This division has now been superseded and the suborder is now divided into four superfamilies: Aschiphasmatoidea, Bacilloidea, Phyllioidea, and Pseudophasmatoidea. The latter includes family Agathemeridae, which was previously placed in suborder

Agathemerodea Agathemerodea was a suborder of the insect order Phasmatodea, but this placement is now considered a very doubtful. It consists of the sole genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as us ...

Aschiphasmatoidea

Auth. Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 * † ArchipseudophasmatidaeZompro, O. 2001. The Phasmatodea and Raptophasma n. gen., Orthoptera ''incertae sedis'', in Baltic amber (Insecta: Orthoptera). ''Mitteilungen des Geologisch-Paläontologischen Institutes der Universität Hamburg'' 85: 229–261. * Aschiphasmatidae - Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 (Tropical Southeast Asia) * Damasippoididae - Zompro, 2004 (Madagascar) * Prisopodidae - Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 (Central and South America, South Africa, India, Indo-China, Malesia)

Bacilloidea

Auth. Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 * Anisacanthidae - Günther, 1953 (Madagascar) *

Bacillidae BacillidaeBrunner von Wattenwyl C (1893) ''Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria, Genova'' (2)13(33): 101. is a stick insect family in the order Phasmatodea and the suborder Verophasmatodea. Subfamilies and Genera The ''Pha ...

- Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 (Africa, Europe) *

Heteropterygidae The Heteropterygidae is a family (biology), family of Phasmatodea, stick insects belonging to the suborder Euphasmatodea. Species can be found in Australasia, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. About 150 valid species have been described (at the ...

- Kirby, 1896 (Australasia, east and southeast Asia)

Phyllioidea

Auth. Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 *

Phylliidae The family Phylliidae (often misspelled Phyllidae) contains the Extant taxon, extant true leaf insects or walking leaves, which include some of the most remarkably camouflaged leaf mimicry, mimics (mimesis) in the entire animal kingdom. They occu ...

- Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 (Australasia, Asia, Pacific)

Pseudophasmatoidea

Auth. Rehn, 1904; especially Americas, Madagascar, Asia, Australasia, Europe * Agathemeridae - Bradler, 2003 (monotypic) * Heteronemiidae - Rehn, 1904 *

Pseudophasmatidae Pseudophasmatidae is a family (biology), family of stick insect, in the suborder Verophasmatodea, commonly called the "striped walkingsticks". An important identifying characteristic is its mesothorax, which is never more than three times as lon ...

- Rehn, 1904

Infraorder Anareolatae

The following three families were previously placed in the "Anareolatae", but are currently (2021) considered ''

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 ...

''. *

Diapheromeridae Diapheromeridae is a family of stick insects (order Phasmatodea). They belong to the superfamily Anareolatae of suborder Verophasmatodea. The family contains some huge species, e.g. '' Paraphanocles keratosqueleton'' which can grow to over 30 ...

- Kirby, 1904 - Worldwide distribution (except the Antarctic) *

Lonchodidae LonchodidaeBrunner von Wattenwyl (1893) ''Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria, Genova'' (2)13(33): 80. is a family of Phasmatodea, stick insects, with more than 150 genera and 1,000 described species. The subfamilies Necrosc ...

- Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1893 - Worldwide, but especially southern Africa, Asia & Australia *

Phasmatidae The Phasmatidae are a family (biology), family of the stick insects (order (biology), order Phasmatodea). They belong to the Superfamily (zoology), superfamily Anareolatae of suborder Verophasmatodea. Like many of their relatives, the Phasmatida ...

- Gray, 1835 - Asia, Australasia, Americas (especially South), Pacific, Africa

References

External links

*
Phasmid Study Group: Verophasmatodea
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q125765469, from2=Q2102809 Phasmatodea Insect suborders