Chitoniscus
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| Chitoniscus | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Chitoniscus sp. “Suva”, ventro-posterior view of their coxae coloration | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Phasmatodea |
| Suborder: | Euphasmatodea |
| Superfamily: | Phyllioidea |
| Family: | Phylliidae |
| Genus: | Chitoniscus Stål, 1875 |
| Type species | |
| * Chitoniscus lobiventris (Blanchard, 1853) | |
| Species[1] | |
| |
Chitoniscus is a genus of leaf insects native to the Fiji Islands. The species from New Caledonia, formerly listed in this genus, formerly classified in this genus were transferred to the newly described genus Trolicaphyllium in 2021.[1][2]
Chitoniscus species are relatively small and broad representatives of the leaf insects, measuring 40 to 60 millimetres (1.6 to 2.4 in) in length. Their abdomen tapers to a point in both sexes and is either smooth or strongly lobed. Their eggs are small and lack pinnae. In these morphological characteristics, they resemble members of the genus Trolicaphyllium, which were therefore long classified within the genus Chitoniscus. Differences exist in the development of the inner lobe on the tibiae of the forelegs (protibial interior lobe). In Chitoniscus, this lobe is either completely absent in both sexes or present only in the proximal half, whereas in Trolicaphyllium, it extends over the entire shaft of the inner fore tibiae. Females also differ in the structure of their antennae, whose segments three, eight, and nine are not broadened, unlike those of Trolicaphyllium females. While Chitoniscus females are striking sky-blue coxae, those of Trolicaphyllium females are a similar green to the rest of the body. Male Chitoniscus lack the three ocelli on the vertex between the compound eyes, which are present in many other Phyllioidea species.[2]