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Supella dominicana, a new species of cockroach (Blattida: Ectobiidae) with developed spermatids in Dominican amber

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Abstract

A small, male cockroach (7 mm in length) in Dominican amber is described as Supella dominicana sp. n. (Blattida: Ectobiidae = Blattellidae). The dark tegmina, which are equal to the length of the abdomen, have a yellow cross bar and a central stripe giving the illusion that the body is divided into two halves. The pronotum is partially triangular in outline, with rounded edges and unusually flat surface. The fore femora contain two short apical terminal spines and a series of short wide-spaced marginal spines. The fore tarsus has the first article surpassing the others combined. The 7-segmented cerci are longer than wide. The arolia are well developed and the tarsal claws are symmetrical, of equal length, each with a blunt tooth. The two styles are small, equal in shape and with a branched seta. Developing spermatids are present at the tip of the abdomen. This fossil, which is the first ectobiid cockroach described from Dominican amber, provides some new features of the genus Supella Shelford, 1911.

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Acknowledgements

The author is indebted to Peter Vršanský for assistance in determining the genus of the present fossil and clarifying morphological features. Two anonymous reviewers are acknowledged for helpful suggestions.

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  1. Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, 97331, Corvallis, OR, USA

    George Poinar

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Poinar, G. Supella dominicana, a new species of cockroach (Blattida: Ectobiidae) with developed spermatids in Dominican amber. Biologia 78, 1731–1738 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11756-022-01271-9

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