Phobaeticus annamallayanus (Wood-Mason, 1877) Hennemann & Conle, 2008

Hennemann, Frank H. & Conle, Oskar V., 2008, Revision of Oriental Phasmatodea: The tribe Pharnaciini Günther, 1953, including the description of the world's longest insect, and a survey of the family Phasmatidae Gray, 1835 with keys to the subfamilies and tribes (Phasmatodea: " Anareolatae ": Phasmatidae), Zootaxa 1906, pp. 1-316 : 137

Phobaeticus annamallayanus (Wood-Mason, 1877) comb. nov.

Phibalosoma annamallayanum Wood-Mason, 1877a: 161 . ST: ♀: Southern India, Annamallay Forests, leg. Colonel R.C. Beddome (in alcohol – not traced in NZSI, presumed lost); ST, ♀: Southern India, Travancore Hills, leg. F.Day (valde defectum – not traced in NZSI, presumed lost).

Phibalosoma annamalayanum, Wood-Mason, 1877b: 346 . [Misspelling]

Pharnacia annamallayanum, Kirby, 1904a: 359 . Brock, 1996: 27. Otte & Brock, 2005: 264.

Etymology: The specific name refers to the type-locality, the Annamallay Hills in southern India.

Comments: Wood-Mason (1877a: 161) originally described Phibalosoma annamallayanum from two ♀♀ collected in the Annamallay Forests and Travancore Hills in southern India. Wood-Mason’s type specimens are not traced in NZSI (personal communication with Dr. M. S. Shishodia) and inquiries to the museum in New Dehli have received no reply. Consequently, the types could not be examined for this study and must be presumed lost. This species is hence not included in the keys above .

Unfortunately, the original diagnosis by Wood-Mason is very brief and does not mention any features that serve for distinguishing Ph. annamallayanum from related taxa. Wood-Mason (1877a: 161) stated it to be a “characteristically Malayan form” which was very close to Ph. acanthopus Burmeister, 1838 (= Phobaeticus serratipes ( Gray, 1835) and commented: “Very closely allied to the proceeding [ Ph. serratipes ], from which it differs in its stouter body, in its shorter and thicker legs, and in the relative proportions of the different parts of the body, particularly the meso- and metathorax.”. Subsequently, Wood-Mason (1877b: 346) discussed the proposed relation to Ph. serratipes in more detail and stated Ph. annamallayanum to exhibit “a lamellar process […] at the hinder end of the sixth ventral segment of the abdomen [referring to the praeopercular organ on sternum VII]” and the metanotum to be conspicuously longer than the median segment. The presence of distinct praeopercular organ on abdominal sternum VII, the length relation of the metanotum and median segment and distribution in Southern India undoubtedly place Ph. annamallayanum in Phobaeticus Brunner v. Wattenwyl, 1907 (comb. nov.). Wood-Mason (1877a: 161) cited a body length of ca. 220.0 mm for the ♀ from Annamallay Forest.

Ph. annamallayanum is apparently close to Phobaeticus sinetyi Brunner v. Wattenwyl, 1907 also from South India and might even be conspecific. This is emphazised by both species being sympatric on Annamallay Hills. However, due to the insufficient description by Wood-Mason (1877a & 1877b) and unavailability of the type specimens any decision about the identity of Ph. annamallayanum and possible synonymy with Ph. sobrinus must await availability of newly collected material including the so far unknown ♂♂ from the typelocality of Ph. annamallayanum .