Zygentoma

Habitus of Trinemura callawae, from Smith et al. (2012).

Belongs within: Panhexapoda.
Contains: Lepismatidae.

The Zygentoma, silverfish, are primitively wingless insects with an elongate terminal filament between the cerci and usually a covering of scales (Grimaldi & Engel 2005). Certain members of the group are familiar as inhabitants of human houses. Living members of the order, excluding the Baltic amber species Lepidothrix pilifera), form a clade Euzygentoma characterised by reductions of the abdominal sterna, number of abdominal styli, and number of tarsal segments (Grimaldi & Engel 2005).

Characters (from Grimaldi & Engel 2005): Compound eyes reduced or absent; ocelli usually absent. Distalmost palpal segment of labium enlarged and modified. Coxae dorsoventrally flattened, enlarged.

<==Zygentoma [Lepismatida, Lepismatoidea]
    |  i. s.: Battigrassiella Paclt 1963 TW05, F90 [Noticoliidae]
    |           `--B. wheeleri TW05 [=Grassiella wheeleri F90]
    |         Carbotriplura kukalovae GE05
    |         Ramsdelepidion Kukalová-Peck 1987 A99, K-P87
    |           `--*R. schusteri Kukalová-Peck 1987 K-P87
    |--Lepidothrix [Lepidothricidae, Lepidotrichidae] GE05
    |    `--L. pilifera GE05
    `--Euzygentoma GE05
         |--+--Maindronia Bouvier 1897 C92 [Maindroniidae GE05, Maindroniinae]
         |  `--Lepismatidae GE05
         `--Nicoletiidae GE05
              |  i. s.: Squamigera latebricola Espinasa 1999 SE12
              |         Squamatinia algharbica Mendes & Reboleira in Reboleira et al. 2012 SE12
              |         Texoreddellia Wygodzinsky 1973 F90
              |           |--T. aquilonalis Espinasa & Giribet 2009 SE12
              |           `--T. texensis F90
              |         Metrinura Mendes 1994 SE12
              |           |--M. russendenensis (Smith & Shipp 1977) SE12
              |           `--M. subtropica Smith 2006 SE12
              |         Subtrinemura Smith 1998 SE12
              |           |--S. anemone (Smith 1988) SE12
              |           |--S. excelsa SE12
              |           `--S. spelaea Smith 1998 SE12
              |         Onychomachilis fischeri MP08
              |--Nicoletiinae SM14
              |    |--Hemitrinemura SM14
              |    |--Nicoletia Gervais 1842 F90
              |    |    |--N. meinerti Silvestri 1905 F90
              |    |    |--N. phytophila Gervais 1844 SE12
              |    |    |--N. ruckeri Silvestri 1905 F90
              |    |    `--N. tergata Mills 1940 F90
              |    |--Trinemophora W39
              |    `--Trinemura Silvestri 1908 SM14, SE12 [Subnicoletiinae]
              |         |--*T. novaehollandiae Silvestri 1908 SE12
              |         |--T. anemone SW91
              |         |--T. calcaripalpa Smith 1998 SE12
              |         |--T. callawae Smith, Eberhard et al. 2012 SE12
              |         |--T. cundalinae Smith, Eberhard et al. 2012 SE12
              |         |--T. excelsa Silvestri 1920 [incl. Nicoletia australis Wom. 1936] W39
              |         |--T. norfolkensis SW91
              |         |--T. novaecaledoniae W39
              |         |--T. russendenensis SW91
              |         |--T. troglophila Smith 1998 SE12
              |         `--T. watsoni Smith 1998 SE12
              `--Atelurinae [Ateluridae] SM14
                   |  i. s.: Gastrotheus disjunctus SW91
                   |         Atelurodes Silvestri 1916 SM14
                   |           `--A. similatus SW91
                   |         Atelura Heyden 1855 W39
                   |           |--A. disjuncta Silvestri 1908 W39
                   |           |--A. formicaria A99
                   |           `--A. similata Silvestri 1908 W39
                   |         Crypturelloides mindeni Smith & Veera Singham 2011 SM14
                   |         Grassiella Silvestri 1898 SM14
                   `--Atopatelurini SM14
                        |--Pseudogastrotheus Mendes 2003 SM14
                        |--Arabiatelura Mendes 1995 SM14
                        |--Rasthegotus Mendes 2001 SM14
                        |--Ecnomatelura Wygodzinsky 1961 SM14
                        |--Allatelura hilli Silvestri 1947 SM14
                        |--Galenatelura deflexa Smith 2009 SM14
                        |--Troglotheus Smith & McRae 2014 SM14
                        |    `--*T. bifurcus Smith & McRae 2014 SM14
                        |--Australiatelura Mendes 1995 SM14
                        |    `--A. tasmanica (Silvestri 1949) SM14
                        |--Ausallatelura Smith 2007 SM14
                        |    `--A. ordoarmata Smith 2007 SM14
                        |--Dodecastyla Paclt 1974 SM14
                        |    |--*D. bifida (Schäffer 1897) (see below for synonymy) SM14
                        |    |--D. crypta Smith & McRae 2014 SM14
                        |    `--D. rima Smith & McRae 2014 SM14
                        `--Atopatelura Silvestri 1908 SW91, W39
                             |--A. furcifera Silvestri 1908 SM14
                             |--A. hartmeyeri Silvestri 1908 W39
                             |--A. kraepelini Silvestri 1908 W39
                             `--A. michaelseni Silvestri 1908 W39

*Dodecastyla bifida (Schäffer 1897) [=Lepismina bifida, Atelura bifida, Grassiella bifida; incl. G. silvestrii Escherich 1903] SM14

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A99] Ax, P. 1999. Das System der Metazoa II. Ein Lehrbuch der phylogenetischen Systematik. Gustav Fisher Verlag: Stuttgart (translated: 2000. Multicellular Animals: The phylogenetic system of the Metazoa vol. 2. Springer).

[C92] Crawford, R. L. 1992. Catalogue of the genera and type species of the harvestman superfamily Phalangioidea (Arachnida). Burke Museum Contributions in Anthropology and Natural History 8: 1–60.

[F90] Ferguson, L. M. 1990. Insecta: Microcoryphia and Thysanura. In: Dindal, D. L. (ed.) Soil Biology Guide pp. 935–949. John Wiley & Sones: New York.

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

[K-P87] Kukalová-Peck, J. 1987. New Carboniferous Diplura, Monura, and Thysanura, the hexapod ground plan, and the role of thoracic side lobes in the origin of wings (Insecta). Canadian Journal of Zoology 65: 2327–2345.

[MP08] Mendes, L. F., & G. O. Poinar. 2008. A new fossil silverfish (Zygentoma: Insecta) in Mesozoic Burmese amber. European Journal of Soil Biology 44: 491–494.

[SE12] Smith, G. B., S. M. Eberhard, G. Perina & T. Finston. 2012. New species of short range endemic troglobitic silverfish (Zygentoma: Nicoletiidae) from subterranean habitats in Western Australia's semi-arid Pilbara region. Records of the Western Australian Museum 27 (2): 101–116.

[SM14] Smith, G. B. & J. M. McRae. 2014. New species of subterranean silverfish (Zygentoma: Nicoletiidae: Atelurinae) from Western Australia's semi-arid Pilbara region. Records of the Western Australian Museum 29: 105–127.

[SW91] Smith, G. B., & J. A. L. Watson. 1991. Thysanura. Zygentoma (silverfish). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2^nd ed. vol. 1 pp. 275–278. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[TW05] Terry, M. D., & M. F. Whiting. 2005. Mantophasmatodea and phylogeny of the lower neopterous insects. Cladistics 21: 240–257.

[W39] Womersley, H. 1939. Primitive Insects of South Australia: Silverfish, springtails, and their allies. South Australian Branch of the British Science Guild: Adelaide.

Last updated: 31 May 2022.