A molecular phylogeny of P hasmatodea with emphasis on N ecrosciinae, the most species‐rich subfamily of stick insects

Abstract The phasmatodeans or stick and leaf insects are considered to be a mesodiverse insect order with more than 3000 species reported mainly from the tropics. The stick insect subfamily N ecrosciinae comprises approximately 700 described species in more than 60 genera from the O riental and A ustralian region, forming the most species‐rich subfamily traditionally recognized within P hasmatodea. However, the monophyly of this taxon has never been thoroughly tested and the evolutionary relationships among its members are unknown. We analyse three nuclear ( 18S and 28S r DNA , histone 3 ) and three mitochondrial ( CO II , 12S and 16S r DNA ) genes to infer the phylogeny of 60 species of stick insects that represent all recognized families and major subfamilies sensu G ünther and the remarkable diversity within N ecrosciinae. Maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and B ayesian techniques largely recover the same substantial clades, albeit with highly discordant relationships between them. Most members of the subfamily N ecrosciinae form a clade. However, the genus Neohirasea  – currently classified within L onchodinae – is strongly supported as subordinate to N ecrosciinae, whereas Baculofractum , currently classified within N ecrosciinae, is strongly supported within L onchodinae. Accordingly, we formally transfer Neohirasea and allied taxa (namely N eohiraseini) to N ecrosciinae sensu nova (s.n.) and Baculofractum to L onchodinae s.n. We also provide further evidence that Leprocaulinus , until recently recognized as N ecrosciinae, belongs to L onchodinae, and forms the sister taxon of Baculofractum . Furthermore, L onchodinae is paraphyletic under exclusion of Eurycantha and Neopromachus . We reinstate the traditional view that Neopromachus and related taxa ( N eopromachini sensu G ünther) are a subgroup of L onchodinae and transfer those taxa + the N ew G uinean E urycanthinae accordingly. Morphological evidence largely corroborates our molecular‐based findings and also reveals that Menexenus fruhstorferi is a member of the genus Neohirasea and is thus transferred from Menexenus ( L onchodinae) to Neohirasea , as Neohirasea fruhstorferi comb.n . ( N ecrosciinae s.n. ). Other phylogenetic results include A reolatae and A nareolatae each supported as polyphyletic, H eteropteryginae and L anceocercata ( B ayesian analysis) are monophyletic, albeit with low support, and N ecrosciinae s.n. and L onchodinae s.n. are recovered as sister taxa ( B ayesian analysis).