Glossary of Phasmid Terms

A minute section of insect leg, lying between coxa and femur.

The lower of the two main parts of an insect leg. below the 'knee' joint

The external structures which aid in mating and egg laying.

One of the main divisions of the insect body - head, thorax or abdomen.

a small sac containing sperm used by some male insects during mating

The ability to regrow a lost structure

One of the major groups into which the animal kingdom is divided.

The production of young from unfertilised eggs

A hole opening into the heart

One of the groups into which a class is divided

An immature insect, looking rather like the adult except for its lack of wings

A small hole in the side of the egg

The softer jaw which lies behind the mandible, equipped with a palp

The lower lip, equipped with a pair of palps

A body cavity filled with blood.

The shedding of the skin which takes place as an insect grows

The uppermost section of an insect leg

One of the groups into which a phylum is divided

A defensive reaction which produces the automatic shedding of a limb

One of a pair of jointed sensory structures arising from the front of the head; A feeler;

Jaws face forward.

The terms elytron or tegmen are almost always used when referring to the forewing of a phasmid. The term hindwing is usually used in preference to ala. If the term wing is used on its own it usually refers to the hindwing since in most phasmids the forewing is relatively insignificant. [See Elytron, Tegmen, Ala, Hindwing].

The 11th abdominal segment [Lamina supraanalis].

The fore wing. Use of this term seems to have deceased, with a corresponding increase in the term elytron in recent years.

The dorsal part of any segment. Although the term applies to all segments, notum is often used to refer to the thoracic terga.

Bearing numerous teeth. [Dentate].

A blunt or irregularly topped structure, not pointed like a spine; usually small but the term is also used to refer to large wart-like structures; often of an irregualr shape.

A carina on the front, underside corner of the femur or tibia.

Covered in irregularly shaped lobes or wart-like protubernces.

See: Vomer.

A lateral plate on the ventral surface of the body, these are rarely evident externally.

The first segment of the thorax. The fore legs are attached to this segment.

Wrinkled, covered in small ridges.

Rough; irregularly and roughly rugose; possessing short sharp projections of wrinkles.

A hard plate of the body. These may be given more precise names depending on where they are on the body, i.e. tergite, sternite.

The upper surface of the mesothorax.

The upper surface of the metathorax.

A tergum of a thoracic segment, i.e. a dorsal plate of the thorax [See: Pronotum, Mesonotum, Metanotum].

An indentation running across the pronotum, usually more or less in the middle; it is particularly noticeable in some groups, e.g. Dares, but in many groups can only be seen with magnification. It marks the position of the sulcus, the joint between the two plates whioch make up the pronotum. Sometimes just referred to as the sulcus.

The first abdominal segment. This is fused with the metanotum to varying degrees, in some instances it is indistinguishable.

The plate covering the genital opening. Rather an out-dated term. [Subgenital plate, Operculum of female, Poculum of male].

The angle of the operculum of an egg makes with the longitudinal axis. This may be either positive or negative.

The upper surface of the prothorax

The distal segment of the tarsus, i.e. the claws (ungues) and arolium at the end of the 5th tarsomere (3rd tarsomere in Timema.

An organ on the 7th sternite of females, used during copulation. It is usually composed of one or more bumps, ridges or flaps. It is not present in all species. [Preopercular organ].

The covering of the male genital opening; the 9th sternum. Often referred to as the male operculum, but the use of poculum is preferable since it cannot be confused with the female operculum. [Lamina subgenitalis, Subgenital plate].

Comb-like; the term is used to refer to the serrated ungues of Aschiphasmatinae.

A device for egg laying, found in many species which push eggs into soil, cracks or plant tissues. It is formed either by an elongated lamina supraanalis and elongated operculum (an oviscapt); or by elongated valves and the operculum (an appendicular ovipositor).

Attached to the anterior of the matanotum. The term hind wing (or hind wing, or hing-wing) is usually used, the alternative, ala, is rarely used. [See: Wing, Costal region, Anal region].