Wing base morphology of Aetalionidae (Hemiptera: Cicadomorpha) and its phylogenetic implications

The Aetalionidae is a small family belonging to the treehopper superfamily Membracoidea (Hemiptera: Cicadomorpha). Although the wing-base morphology of Cicadomorpha was examined in detail recently, the wing base of this family has not been investigated to date. We examined morphology of the wing-base structure of Aetalionidae. Using the characters selected from the wing base, we inferred the phylogenetic placement of this family and confirmed that it belongs to the superfamily Membracoidea and is likely a sister group of the Membracidae.