Garciaitettix mirabilis Cadena-Castañeda & Tavares, 2025

Cadena-Castañeda, Oscar J., Quintana-Arias, Ronald Fernando, Infante, Ivette Coque, Silva, Daniela Santos Martins & Tavares, Gustavo Costa, 2025, Studies on pygmy grasshoppers: On the current Metrodorinae sensu lato classification (Orthoptera: Tetrigidae) with emphasis on American and Malagasy taxa, Zootaxa 5597 (1), pp. 1-265 : 145

Garciaitettix mirabilis Cadena-Castañeda & Tavares , sp. nov.

( Figs. 96 , 97 , Map 6)

Type material. Holotype. Male, Colombia, Meta, Cubarral , “Reserva Natural Las Palmeras”, 1600 m. 3°49’22.4”N 73°53’20.1”W. 1100 m, N. Gonzalez leg. ( CAUD) Paratype. 1 male, same data as holotype ( CAUD) .

Description. Male. Small-sized (7.9–8.2 mm) ( Fig. 96 ). Coloration. General coloration of the body brown, with each granule on the body with a small whitish spot ( Fig. 96 ). Head dark brown; eyes reddish-brown and ocelli yellowish; clypeus dark brown, labrum with most of the central surface dark brown, towards the sides with a conspicuous white stripe and the edge outlined in black; palpi light ocher ( Fig. 97A ). Scapus and pedicellus ocher; third to sixth antennomeres light brown; seventh, eighth, and the basal half of the ninth dark brown; distal half of the ninth and tenth antennomere white ( Fig. 97B ). Pronotum brown with small black and whitish spots of medium size scattered in the media carina; middle section of the pronotal disc with a longitudinal black stripe on each side, extending from the external lateral carina towards the median carina of the pronotal disc ( Fig. 96A ); infrascapular area black, with two whitish stripes traversing it in the middle and in the distal section ( Fig. 96A ). Fore and mid femora brown with two whitish stripes, one faint at the base and one more conspicuous in the middle; anterior and middle tibiae with a stripe near the base and another forming a ring in the middle ( Figs. 97D, E ); hind femur brown with margins delineated by alternating brown, white, and black spots, also with a white stripe near the base and another near the apex of the median external area; hind tibia grayish, with two whitish-yellow rings near the base ( Fig. 96A ). Tarsi of the fore and mid legs with the first segment black, last segment with the base grayish-brown, middle section white, and tip black; hind tarsi with the first tarsomere whitish, outer face blurred gray, second tarsomere black, last tarsomere with the base gray, middle white, and tip black. Head. Eyes occupying a quarter of the cephalic capsule; space between the eyes 1.5 times the width of one of the eyes ( Fig. 97A ); fastigium of the vertex straight in dorsal view and not prolongated in lateral view ( Fig. 97B ). Antennae with ten flattened segments, last segment lanceolate, and an antennal organ in the shape of a small spine ( Figs. 97B, C ). Thorax. Pronotum rugose and undulated, extending near the tip of the abdomen, with a hump at the level of the meso and metathorax ( Fig. 97B ), after there with a less elevated undulation, which projects near the distal portion; apex of pronotum slightly curving upward; external lateral carina with fine serrulation ( Fig. 96B ); infrascapular area widened and ovoid; lateral lobes of the pronotum a slightly wider than long, lower margin acute ( Fig. 96A ); posterior margin of lateral lobe rounded; lateral shoulder carina narrow and moderately prolonged ( Fig. 97C ). Legs slender, moderately long; fore and mid femora with two small prolongations on the ventral margin ( Figs. 97D, E ). Hind femur with slightly undulated margins; antegenicular and genicular teeth well-developed ( Fig. 96A ); hind tibia armed with six small spines on each dorsal margin ( Fig. 96B ). Abdomen. Subgenital plate slender and mid-sized, with dorsal edge straight; epiproct ovoid longer than wide; cerci cylindrical and tapering towards the tip ( Fig. 97F ); penultimate abdominal sternite rounded ( Fig. 97G ).

Female. Unknown.

Measurements (in mm): CFP: 7.9–8.2. PL: 6.3–6.5. PLB: 4.3–4.5. FF: 2.1–2.3. FL: 2.5–2.6. MFL: 2.5–2.7. MTL: 2.7–2.8. HL: 5.0–5.2. HW: 1.5–1.6. HL: 5.0–3.1.

Remarks. This is the first tetrigid described from “Las Palmeras” Natural Reserve. Previously, two crickets from this reserve have been described: Crinklyalis gracilis Cadena-Castañeda, García García, Castellanos & Tavares, 2023 ( Phalangopsidae ), a small phalangopsid with a curious dome-like morphology of the tegminae ( Cadena-Castañeda et al., 2023a), and Laureopsis andina Cadena-Castañeda, Quintana-Arias & Tavares, 2023 ( Gryllidae ), a tiny cricket, from a group previously recorded only for the Amazon ( Cadena-Castañeda et al., 2023b).

Etymology. The specific epithet of this species comes from the Latin mirabilis , which means wonderful or incredible, referring to the nice morphology of the species, which is notable in the shape of its antennae and pronotum.

Figures

FIGURE 96. Garciaitettix mirabilis Cadena-Castañeda & Tavares sp. nov. Male holotype habitus. A. Lateral views. B. Habitus in dorsal view.

FIGURE 97. Garciaitettix mirabilis Cadena-Castañeda & Tavares sp. nov. Male holotype. A. Frons. B–C. Head and thorax in lateral and dorsal views respectively. D. Fore femur. E. Mid femur. F–G. Terminalia in lateral and axial views respectively.