Forficulida

Protelytron permianum, from ToLWeb.

Belongs within: Polyneoptera.
Contains: Archidermaptera, Neodermaptera.

The name Forficulida is used here as in Shcherbakov (2002) for the clade uniting the Dermaptera (earwigs) with the fossil, paraphyletic 'Protelytroptera'. First recorded from the Lower Permian, the forficulids are distinguished by having their forewings hardened, with the sutural margins overlapping in repose, and the hindwings transversely folded when closed. In the Dermaptera, the elytra are reduced so that they cover at most the base of the abdomen; they also have intercalary fan veins in the hind wing and elongate cerci. Dermaptera and the Middle to Late Permian Protelytroidea are united by having hind wings with the proximal remigium (squama) somewhat sclerotised and thickenings on the fan veins (Shcherbakov 2002).

Forficulida [Protelytrida, Protelytrina, Protelytroptera]
    |  i. s.: Cordulagomphus santanensis Carle & Wighton 1990 NW03
    |         Allodahlia shanwangensis Zhou 1986 NW03
    |         Permelytropsis Tillyard 1924 Z02
    |         Cylindrogaster Stål 1855 PJ03
    |         Semenovioloides capitatus Vishniakova 1980 K03
    |         Permelytridae RJ93
    |--Archelytroidea S02
    |    |--Blattelytridae S02
    |    |--Elytroneura Carpenter 1933 Z02 [Elytroneuridae S02]
    |    |--Planelytron Kukalová 1965 KN13 [Planelytridae S02]
    |    `--Archelytridae S02
    |         |--Megelytridae S02
    |         `--Apachelytron [Apachelytridae, Archelytrinae] S02
    |              `--A. transversum S02
    `--+--Dermaptera [Brachydermaptera, Forficulariae, Forficulina] GE05
       |    |  i. s.: Labidurodes robustus B14
       |    |         Chelidurella acanthopygia RK91
       |    |         ‘Hodotermes’ japonicus Hagen 1868 F97
       |    |--Archidermaptera GE05
       |    `--Pandermaptera GE05
       |         |--Neodermaptera GE05
       |         `--Eodermaptera GE05
       |              |--Turanodermatidae GE05
       |              `--Semenoviola Z02 [Semenoviolidae GE05, Semenoviolinae]
       |                   `--S. obliquotruncata Martynov 1925 Z02
       `--Protelytroidea S02
            |--Dermelytridae S02
            |--Protelytron [Protelytridae] S02
            |    |--P. angustum Carpenter 1933 KN13
            |    `--P. permianum Tillyard 1931 Z02
            |--Uralelytron Rohdendorf 1939 [incl. Bardacoleus Zalessky 1947; Bardacoleidae] S02
            |    |--U. insignis S02
            |    `--U. martynovi S02
            `--Permofulgoridae [Labidelytridae, Permophilidae, Protocoleidae, Stenelytridae] S02
                 |--Arctocoleus ivensis S02
                 |--Protocoleus mitchelli Tillyard 1924 F71
                 |--Phyllelytron petalon K-P91
                 |--Labidelytron Kukalová-Peck 1988 Z02
                 |    `--L. enervatum RJ93
                 |--Permophilus pincombei Tillyard 1924 F71
                 `--Permofulgor [Permofulgorinae] F71
                      |--P. belmontensis Tillyard 1917 F71
                      `--P. indistinctus Tillyard 1922 F71

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B14] Burr, M. 1914. Les Dermaptères de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et des îles Loyalty. In: Sarasin, F., & J. Roux (eds) Nova Caledonia: Forschungen in Neu-Caledonian und auf den Loyalty-Inseln. A. Zoologie vol. 1 pt 4 pp. 315–324, pl. 9. C. W. Kreidels Verlag: Wiesbaden.

[F71] Fletcher, H. O. 1971. Catalogue of type specimens of fossils in the Australian Museum, Sydney. Australian Museum Memoir 13: 1–167.

[F97] Froggatt, W. W. 1897. Australian Termitidae. Part II. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 21 (4): 510–552, pls 35–36.

[GE05] Grimaldi, D., & M. S. Engel. 2005. Evolution of the Insects. Cambridge University Press: New York.

[KN13] Kirejtshuk, A. G., & A. Nel. 2013. Skleroptera, a new order of holometabolous insects (Insecta) from the Carboniferous. Zoosystematica Rossica 22 (2): 247–257.

[K03] Kluge, N. J. 2003. About evolution and homology of genital appendages of insects. Trudy Russkogo Entomologicheskogo Obshestva [Proceedings of the Russian Entomological Society] 74: 3–16.

[K-P91] Kukalová-Peck, J. 1991. Fossil history and the evolution of hexapod structures. In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers vol. 1 pp. 141–179. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[NW03] Nel, A., A. Waller, V. Albouy, J.-J. Menier & G. de Ploëg. 2003. New fossil earwigs from the lowermost Eocene amber of Paris Basin (France) (Insecta, Dermaptera, family incertae sedis). Geodiversitas 25 (1): 119–129.

[PJ03] Poinar, G. O., T. A. Jackson, N. L. Bell & M. B. Wahid. 2003. Cylindrocorpus inevectus sp. n. associated with the oil palm weevil, Elaeidobius kamerunicus (Faust) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), with a synopsis of the family Cylindrocorporidae and establishment of Longibuccidae n. fam. (Diplogastroidea: Nematoda). Nematology 5 (2): 183–190.

[RK91] Rentz, D. C. F., & D. K. McE. Kevan. 1991. Dermaptera (earwigs). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers vol. 1 pp. 360–368. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[RJ93] Ross, A. J., & E. A. Jarzembowski. 1993. Arthropoda (Hexapoda; Insecta). In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 363–426. Chapman & Hall: London.

[S02] Shcherbakov, D. E. 2002. Order Forficulida Latreille, 1810. The earwigs and protelytropterans (=Dermaptera DeGeer, 1773 +Protelytroptera Tillyard, 1931). In: Rasnitsyn, A. P., & D. L. J. Quicke (eds) History of Insects pp. 288–291. Kluwer Academic Publishers: Dordrecht.

[Z02] Zhang, J.-F. 2002. The most primitive earwigs (Archidermaptera, Dermaptera, Insecta) from the Upper Jurassic of Nei Monggol Autonomous Region, northeastern China. Acta Micropalaeontologica Sinica 19 (4): 348–362.

Last updated: 18 May 2022.