Mantophasmatodea is an order of carnivorousinsects discovered in 2002, the first new insect order to be described since 1914. The common name for this order is Gladiators, although they are also called Mantophasmids, Mantos and Heelwalkers.
Members of the order are wingless even as adults, making them relatively difficult to identify. They resemble praying mantises and other phasmids. The order was initially described from live specimens found in Namibia (Mantophasma zephyra and M. subsolana) and from a 45-million-year-old specimen of Balticamber (Raptophasma kerneggeri).
The authors of the paper describing the new order note that "it cannot at present be categorically excluded" that the two Mantophasma specimens are of the same species, with the size difference reflecting sexual dimorphism, but they consider this unlikely, because of the wide geographical separation of the specimens.
Classification
The three initial species of Gladiators were classified as follows:
Family Mantophasmatidae
West Wind Gladiator, Mantophasma zephyra
East Wind Gladiator, Mantophasma subsolana
Raptophasma kerneggeri
However, additional specimens and genetic studies have produced several new species identifications, including splitting all three of these species into different families:
Family Tanzaniophasmatidae
East Wind Gladiator, Tanzaniophasma subsolana
Family: Mantophasmatidae
West Wind Gladiator, Mantophasma zephyra
Sclerophasma paresisensis
Family: Austrophasmatidae
Austrophasma caledonensis
Austrophasma gansbaaiensis
Austrophasma rawsonvillensis
Lobophasma redelinghuysensis
Hemilobophasma montaguensis
Karoophasma biedouwensis
Karoophasma botterkloofensis
Namaquaphasma ookiepensis
Family: 'Inquirendo' (taxa of uncertain family placement)
Rhaptophasma kerneggeri
Praedatophasma maraisi
Tyrannophasma gladiator
See also
"Mantophasmatodea: a new insect order with extant members in the Afrotropics" (http://entomologia.rediris.es/mantophasmatodea/insecto11.pdf), by Klaus-D. Klass, Oliver Zompro, Niels P. Kristensen, and Joachim Adis. Science 296 (24 May 2002), 1456-1459. (This is the paper containing the formal order, genus, and species descriptions.)
The game allows the player to build a school of gladiators and take them into battle against opposing schools in a quest for fame and glory.
The gladiators have the opportunity to travel through four distinctly different regions on their road to the ultimate championship.
It is a place very close to Egypt (the main insects of this region are beetles, which held a high importance in Egyptian mythology, and scorpions, a staple arachnid in any desert region.) The conclusion of the game takes place in and around the large central arena of Caltha in the Imperial Region.
The Insect took another step forward, and- no one in the arena could see it, because it was so fast, but the Silencer doubled back, lunged and stabbed the Insect in the chitlins deep with the blade before anyone, including the Insect, could even blink.
The gladiator gave a hoarse scream as the Silencer tugged on the stick, causing the curved blade to sink deeper into the gladiator, pulling it down to the ground.
But as the Insects expanded their numbers he found himself pushed to the periphery of the western continent, which is why he happened to be there.
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