Schizodactylidae Blanchard, 1845

Heads, Sam W. & Leuzinger, Lea, 2011, On the placement of the Cretaceous orthopteran Brauckmannia groeningae from Brazil, with notes on the relationships of Schizodactylidae (Orthoptera, Ensifera), ZooKeys 77, pp. 17-30 : 18

Family Schizodactylidae Blanchard, 1845

Schizodactylites Blanchard 1845: 249.

Schizodactylinae Ramme 1931: 163.

Schizodactylidae Ander 1939: 622.

Brauckmanniidae Martins-Neto 2007: 3, syn. n.

Comments.

The Schizodactylidae , or splay-footed crickets, are a relict group of primitive Ensifera notable for their uniquely modified tarsi, which bear distinctive lobe-like lateral processes that serve to support the insects as they walk around their sandy habitats. The family is traditionally subdivided into two monotypic subfamilies: Schizodactylinae Blanchard, 1845 containing the type genus Schizodactylus Brullé, 1835 found primarily in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and parts of Southeast Asia; and Comicinae Ander, 1939 containing the apparently paedomorphic genus Comicus Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1888 found only in southern parts of Africa. Schizodactylids are primarily nocturnal and are thought to be active predators ( Fletcher 1914). Indeed, species of Schizodactylus have an intimidating habitus and clear predatory adaptations including raptorial prothoracic legs and powerful, enlarged mouthparts. Sub-social behaviour and cannibalism have been observed in populations of Schizodactylus monstrosus (Drury, 1773) ( Choudhuri and Bagh 1974) and Schizodactylus inexpectatus (Werner, 1901) was recently the subject of a detailed biological and ecological study by Aydin and Khomutov (2008).