Mantodea from Eastern Caribbean Islands

Abstract

Summary Whereas Mantises of Trinidad and Tobago have been comprehensively studied, species occurring on more northern islands of Lesser Antilles are little known. The present work aims at updating the current knowledge on Mantises from Eastern Caribbean Islands by compiling data from both published and grey literature, museum specimens as well as specimens we and others collected during surveys conducted over the last decades. Thesprotiella insularis (Bonfils, 1967) is revealed to be widely distributed on islands harboring moist and wet forests from Martinique to Guadeloupe. Liturgusa dominica Svenson, 2014 occurs in humid and subhumid forests of Dominica and Marie-Galante. Gonatista reticulata (Thunberg, 1815) and Thesprotia caribea Rehn & Hebard, 1938 appear restricted to the northernmost islands of the Northeast Lesser Antilles. Musonia surinama Saussure, 1869 is present in the grassland of St Martin and of Southern islands (Barbados, St. Vincent, and Grenada). Lobocneme lobipes (Redtenbacher, 1892) is only present in St. Vincent and Grenada. Epaphrodita undulata (Saussure, 1870) is re-established as synonym of Epaphrodita musarum (Palisot de Beauvois, 1805); this species was described from St. Lucia, but has not been recorded for over 150 years. Finally, a specimen of Bantiella trinitatis Giglio-Tos, 1915 was collected on Martinique in 1975, but this species was not collected again. Despite intensive searching, four non-endemic species once recorded on the archipelago have not been recorded again and might correspond to temporary settlements or to erroneous data. Acontista multicolor Saussure, 1870 does not appear to currently occur on Guadeloupe. Distribution, ecology and phenology of these species are discussed.