13 



often thin 5th article of pereopods I,comprises the families Mimonec- 

 tidae, Proscinidae, and Scinidae, having distinctly closer phyletic rela- 

 tionships. Among them, the family Scinidae and particularly the genus 

 Acanthoscina, is the most highly specialized. The most primitive family 

 is the Mimonectidae, in which one of the genera even retains rudiments 

 of the mandibular palp. 



Bowman and Gruner (1973) have somewhat modernized the system 

 of Pirlot, raising his tribes to the rank of infraorders (the tribe Physo- 

 somata to infraorder Physosomata and the tribe Eugenuina to infraorder 

 Physocephalata) and subtribes to the rank of superfamilies. We support 

 this system (with small changes described below) in our studies. Bow- 

 man and Gruner considered that the infraorder Physosomata included the 

 superfamilies Lanceoloidea and Scinoidea. 



The family Archaeoscinidae occupies a special position. With such 

 important characters as the presence of a triarticulate mandibular palp 

 and short antennae I, it comes closer to the Lanceoloidea, but the 

 narrow cutting edge of the mandibles, structure of maxillae I and II 

 and maxillipeds, reduced antennae II of females, distally not enlarged 

 5th article of pereopods V, and the sexual dimorphism of body shape 

 bring the family Archaeoscinidae closer to the Scinoidea and primarily 

 to the most primitive family, Mimonectidae, of this group. Probably, the 

 family Archaeoscinidae diverged from the common root even before its 

 division into the Lanceoloidea and the Scinoidea. This compels us to 

 separate the family Archaeoscinidae into an independent superfamily, 

 Archaeoscinoidea. 



The phylogenetic relationships of the families within the infraorder 

 Physosomata could possibly be represented by the following scheme: 



>•••• Archaeoscinoidea •••••••• Archaeoscinidae 



Lanceoloidea ....Micnophasmidae 



•Lanceolidae 



Chuneolidae 



•Scinoidea ••••••••••••••• Mimonectidae 



Proscinidae •••••• Scinidae 



Pirlot' s tribe, Hyperiidea Eugenuina (or the infraorder Physocepha- 

 lata), according to the structural characteristics of antennae I of males 



