First assessment of the biodiversity of praying mantises (Insecta: Mantodea) in Cameroon with DNA barcoding

EMAU: Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Universita¨t Greifswald, Griefswald, Germany. MNCN: Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain. MNHN: Muse´um national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris, France. MSNG: Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova "Giacomo Doria", Genova, Italy. MZFN: University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy. MZH: Finnish Museum of Natural History, Helsinki, Finland. NHMUK: The Natural History Museum, London, UK. NHMW: Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria. NHRS: Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stockholm, Sweden. NZSI: Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, India. OUMNH: Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Oxford, UK. RBINS: Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Bruxelles, Belgium. RMCA: Muse´e Royal de l’Afrique Centrale, Tervuren, Belgium. SMF: Forschungsinstitut und Natur-Museum Senckenberg, Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany. ZMHB: Museum fu¨r Naturkunde der Humboldt-Universita¨t, Berlin, Germany. Results Taxonomic checklist A total of 495 specimens (387 males, 108 females) were collected, representing 62 species belonging to 10 families and 35 genera of Mantodea. Eight species (Amorphoscelis lamottei, Cataspilota cf. C. guineensis, Caudatoscelis caudata, Omomantis sigma, Prohierodula viridimar- ginata, Sphodromantis balachowskyi, Stenopyga ziela, and Tarachodes feae), are reported for the first time for the country, while precise locations for Panurgica rehni and Polyspilota pavani improve previous brief records. At least five species (see taxonomic list below) are sus-

pected to be new to science. Photographs of select live specimens are presented on Fig 2. Family Amorphoscelidae Stål, 1877 Amorphoscelis Stål, 1871 Amorphoscelis griffinii Giglio-Tos, 1913 Type locality. Punta Frailes, Fernando Po (= Bioko, Equatorial Guinea). Type deposition. Holotype ♂ MSNG. Material. 1♂ (VGPC23364): Mbalmayo Region, Ebogo II village, light trap 3˚23’38.4"N 11˚ 28’15.6"E, 6.VIII.2021, V. Govorov leg. Distribution. Cameroon, CAR, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Rwanda. Amorphoscelis grisea Bolivar, 1908 Type locality. Cameroon. Type deposition. Holotype ♂ MNCN. Material. 2♂ (VGPC23365-6): Mbalmayo Region, Ebogo II village, light trap 3˚23’38.4"N 11˚28’15.6"E, 5-15.VIII.2021, V. Govorov leg. Distribution. Cameroon, CAR, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Congo, Uganda. Amorphoscelis lamottei Roy, 1963 Type locality. Station Ziela, Mount Nimba, Guinea. Type deposition. Holotype ♂ MNHN. Material. 1♂ (VGPC23363): Mbalmayo Region, Ebogo II village, light trap 3˚23’38.4"N 11˚ 28’15.6"E, 10-11.VIII.2021, V. Govorov leg. Distribution. CAR, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Republic of the Congo, Uganda. PLOS ONE Diversity of praying mantises in Cameroon PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0304163 May 23, 2024 5 / 23