Bryopsocidae
Bryopsocus
Emilie Bess and Kevin P. Johnson- Bryopsocus angulatus
- Bryopsocus townsendi
Introduction
The family Bryopsocidae includes two species in the genus Bryopsocus that are known only from New Zealand. The family was originally described within the family Philotarsidae, which it closely resembles.
Bryopsocids are medium sized bark lice, 2-3 mm in length. They inhabit moss in damp forests.
Characteristics
- Wings:
- Adults have shortened wings or full wings.
- Forewing margins and veins are hairy.
- Forewing veins Rs and M are fused.
- Forewing areola postica is free from vein M.
- Forewing vein A2 is absent.
- Hindwing veins are hairless.
- Hindwing margin is hairy all around.
- Male:
- Phallosome closed with rounded apex
- Female:
- Abdomen of female has hardened dark area on rear dorsal surface.
- Subgenital plate has single lobe.
- Gonapophyses are complete.
How to Know the Family
- Medium sized bark lice with distribution limited to New Zealand.
- Abdomen of female has hardened dark area on rear dorsal surface.
- Wings are shortened or full-length.
- Forewing vein A2 is absent.
Discussion of Phylogenetic Relationships
Specimens of Bryopsocus are rare. The genus was included in a comparative morphological analysis, which placed it within superfamily Perisocidea (Yoshizawa 2002). Bryopsocus has not been studied using molecular techniques.
References
Johnson, K. P. & E. L. Mockford. 2003. Molecular Systematics of Psocomorpha (Psocoptera). Systematic Entomology 28: 409-40
Lienhard, C. and C. N Smithers. 2002. Psocoptera (Insecta) World Catalogue and Bibliography. Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Geneva, Switzerland.
Smithers, C. N. 1996. Psocoptera. Pp. 1-80, 363-372 (Index) in Wells A. (ed.) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Vol. 26. Psocoptera, Phthiraptera, Thysanoptera. Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing, Australia.
Thornton, I.W.B., S.K. Wong and C.N. Smithers. 1977. They Philotarsidae (Psocoptera) of New Zealand and islands of the New Zealand Plateau. Pacific Insects 17: 197-228.
Yoshizawa, K. 2002. Phylogeny and higher classification of suborder Psocomorpha (Insecta: Psocodea:'Psocoptera'). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 136: 371-400.
About This Page
Emilie Bess
Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, Illinois, USA
Kevin P. Johnson
Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, Illinois, USA
Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Emilie Bess at and Kevin P. Johnson at
Page copyright © 2009 Emilie Bess and Kevin P. Johnson
All Rights Reserved.
- First online 25 March 2009
- Content changed 25 March 2009
Citing this page:
Bess, Emilie and Kevin P. Johnson. 2009. Bryopsocidae. Bryopsocus. Version 25 March 2009 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Bryopsocus/30253/2009.03.25 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/
