Toward a New Classification of Planthoppers Hemiptera Fulgoromorpha: 1. What Do Fulgoridiidae Really Cover?

Abstract

The basal classification of planthoppers (Hemiptera Fulgoromorpha) is revised. The wrinkled ambient vein (appendix) on the fore wing is given as an apomorphic character for the Fulgoromorpha for which the Pennsylvanian, Moscovian genus Aviorrhyncha (310 Mya), Aviorrhynchidae, is the oldest representative to date. All other planthopper taxa belong to the informal eucixioidean lineage. Coleoscytoidea and Surijokocixiioidea are downgraded to the family level. Permian genus Reticulocicada is formally transferred from Hemiptera incertae sedis to Coleoscytidae. Fulgoridiidae are reviewed and upgraded to superfamily Fulgoridioidea superfam. nov. Superfamilies Fulgoroidea stat. nov. includes all extant families, except families Cixiidae, Delphacidae, and Lalacidae grouped into Cixioidea superfam. nov., while Jubisentidae, Mimarachnidae, Neazoniidae and Perforissidae remain incertae sedis families in the eucixioidean lineage. Rather than being seen as a “stratigraphic taxon” (e.g., all Jurassic planthoppers belong to Fulgorididiidae), monophyly of Fulgoridioidea is confirmed, based on a complex synapomorphic character: posterior branches of the CuA aligned in series along the CuP, arising from two successive prenodal nodes, and whose anterior branches emerge distinctly anteriorly. Accordingly, the taxonomic composition of Fulgoridioidea includes: 1) Fulgoridiidae (restricted to genera Cixiites, Eofulgoridium, Stonymetopus, Fulgoridium (type genus) and Valvifulgoria, 2) the already described families: Jurassic Qiyangiricaniidae, Triassic Szeiinidae, mid-Cretaceous taxa Dorytocidae, Inoderbidae, Katlasidae; 3) several incertae sedis genera transferred from Perforissidae: Aafrita, Aonikenkissus, Foveopsis, Iberofoveopsis, Lanlakawa, aberrant paratype specimen of Tsaganema oshanini, and genus Aulieezidium excluded from Fulgoridiidae, and 4) the Eocene taxa Weiwoboidae and genus Emiliana transferred from Tropiduchidae. In reverse, genera Compactofulgoridium, Conofulgoridium, Fenghuangor, Fulgoridiella, Fulgoridulum, Fulgoropsis, Margaroptilon, Metafulgoridium, Parafulgoridium, Procercofulgoridium, Productofulgoridium and Tetrafulgoria, are excluded from Fulgoridiidae and transferred to eucixioidean lineage incertae sedis.