INTRODUCTION 
The present catalogue of the Family Ricaniidae forms Part 16 of Fascicle 
IV of the General Catalogue of the Homoptera of the World which is 
devoted to the Superfamily Fulgoroidea. 
CLASSIFICATION ADOPTED 
The classification adopted in the present catalogue is a modification of 
the one proposed by Melichar in 1923. 
CHARACTERS OF THE FAMILY RICANIIDAE 
The family Ricaniidae is one of the smaller families of the Fulgoroidea. 
The present catalogue contains 41 genera and 352 species. 
The species in this family are frequently confused with members of the 
families Flatidae, Nogodinidae, and Acanaloniidae because of the large 
tegmina and their general resemblance to moths. These four families may 
be readily separated by the following characters: The Acanaloniidae have 
the costal vein in the margin of the tegmina and no crossveins on the 
costal border and usually no subapical line. But the other three families 
have the costal vein at some distance from the costal margin and numerous 
crossveins on the costal border, and usually one or two subapical lines on 
the tegmina. In the Flatidae the basal area of the clavus is pustulate while 
in the Ricaniidae and Nogodinidae there are no pustules. The Nogodinidae 
have the basal segment of the hind tarsus usually longer than the second 
and third segments combined with a spine on each side and roundly or 
conically produced between the spines. In the Ricaniidae the basal segment 
of the hind tarsus is very small without lateral spines. The general char- 
acters of the family may be briefly summarized as follows : Head, including 
the compound eyes, usually as wide as, or nearly as wide as, the pronotum. 
Vertex short and broad, nearly rectangular in outline, usually carinate on 
all margins. Frons rather large with lateral carinae strongly elevated, 
sometimes with median and infrequently with intermediate carinae; 
median carina sometimes percurrent. Clypeus much narrower than frons, 
triangular, usually with a median carina but no lateral carinae. Antennae 
short, basal segment short, collarlike, second segment usually subglobular, 
flagellum elongate, usually shorter than the total length of the insect. 
Pronotum short, with a median carina. Mesonotum large, tricarinate, 
convex; tegulae usually large. Tegmina large, broadly triangular; costal 
and commissural margins usually nearly straight, divergent, apical 
margin long, usually nearly straight, occasionally broadly rounded; costal 
membrane broad with numerous crossveins; corium with supernumerary 
veins and many crossveins; clavus not granulate, with the elaval 
iii 
