Phaloria pentecotensis, Desutter-Grandcolas, 2009

Desutter-Grandcolas, Laure, 2009, New and little known crickets from Espiritu Santo Island, Vanuatu (Insecta, Orthoptera, Grylloidea, Pseudotrigonidium Chopard, 1915, Phaloriinae and Nemobiinae p. p.), Zoosystema 31 (3), pp. 619-659 : 644-646

Phaloria pentecotensis n. sp.

( Figs 10 A-D; 11A-F)

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype: Nouvelles-Hébrides [ Vanuatu], [Penama province], I. Pentecôte, Baie Melsisi, E. Aubert de la Rüe, 1 ♀ (MNHN-ENSIF2120).

ETYMOLOGY. — Species named after the type locality, Pentecost island.

DIAGNOSIS. — Species close to P.offensa , by its long HWs, longer than FWs, its long subapical and apical inner spurs of TIII, which increase in size toward TIII apex, the longest being the dorso apical spur ( Fig. 10E, F ), and by its short ovipositor, much shorter than TIII. It can be separated from P.offensa by its larger size, colouration and ovipositor ornamentation. Female genitalia (unknown in P.offensa ) made of a horse-shoe ventral sclerite. Male unknown.

DESCRIPTION

Size medium for the genus; shape elongate, due to very long FWs (much longer than the abdomen) and HWs (much longer than FWs).

Head. Eyes protruding both anteriorly and laterally. Fastigium wider than the scape. Ocelli all large; median ocellus vertical, apical in position; lateral ocelli separate by a distance greater than the distance between the median and one lateral ocellus. Palpi: joint 3 slightly longer than joint 4; joint 5 slightly longer than joint 3, slightly widened toward apex and truncated apically ( Fig. 10A ). Antennae missing. Pronotum transverse, narrowed anteriorly; anterior margin concave; posterior margin bisinuate ( Fig. 10B ). TI with a small, rounded outer tympanum; inner tympanum twice as long, oval, prolonged ventrally by a deep depression more than tympanum width in length; 2 apical spurs, both ventral, the outer the longest. TII with 3 apical spurs, without dorsal outer spur; ventral spurs the longest, about equal size. TIII with 4 pairs of subapical spurs, the most apical pair as separate from tibia apex as from the 2nd pair; outer subapical spurs of nearly equal size, and located lower on tibia than inner spurs; inner subapical spurs longer than outer ones, and increasing in size toward tibia apex, the most apical one the longest; 3 outer apical spur, the median the longest, but shorter than outer subapical spurs; 3 inner apical spurs, the median as long as fourfifths basitarsus III, and the dorsal, the longest, much longer than basitarsus III (see Table 10); tibiae and spurs densely covered with long setae. TIII serrulated over their whole length with few, very small spines located on a kind of submedian, longitudinal carina, made by the narrow, dorsal surface of tibiae III; serrulation again present on TIII outer and inner margins above subapical spurs 4 only; serrulation spine number: 0 or 1 spine between tibia apex and subapical spur 1-3 between subapical spurs 1 and 2, 2-4 between subapical spurs 2 and 3, 2-6 between subapical spurs 3 and 4, and 6-8 inner and 7-10 outer teeth above subapical spur 4. Basitarsi III flattened dorsally; serrulation (5-7 very small spines) on outer margin only.

Colouration

Colouration of head dorsum not clearly visible on female holotype, probably brownish with darker pattern, including 4 well-separate longitudinal brown lines on vertex, 2 median and 2 close to the inner margins of the eyes, and an additional faint, wider, brown line behind each eye; this line becoming darker and being prolonged on the posterior margin of the cheek, covering its whole lower third, and finally raising toward the lower angle of the eye, having the shape of a dark brown “J” ( Fig. 10D ). Fastigium yellow; median ocellus surrounded with black dorsally and laterally, and with a wide yellow spot anteriorly; lateral ocelli surrounded with brown. Face: a wide yellow band below the median ocellus, bordered in its upper half by a pair of thin dark lines prolonging laterally the black colouration around the median ocellus and joining together under the median ocellus; under each eye, a wide brown band enclosing 2 yellow spots. Brown areas of the face and of the cheek separate by yellow. Palpi yellow; apex of joint 5 darker. Scapes yellowish, their anterior sides darker. Mouthparts yellow. Pronotum brown with yellowish margins, and well-defined yellow areas on dorsal disc and lateral lobes ( Fig. 10B, C ): on dorsal disc, one median line, the muscular inscriptions and a pair of rounded spots; on lateral lobe, a transverse yellow band, crossed by a brown line at one-third of its length. Legs yellowish marked with brown.TI with 3 rings, the most basal covering the tympana and including a dorsal yellowish spot above tympana level.TII with 4 rings, conspicuous mostly dorsally. TIII with 7 rings or spots, also mostly dorsal, two above subapical spurs, the most basal the smallest, and one at the level of each pair of subapical spurs (these becoming smaller and smaller toward tibia apex). FI with one preapical ring and a median spot on each side. FII with one preapical ring and 2 spots on each side, one close to the middle and the other near the base. FIII with a wide ring on the knee and one almost complete near the middle; basal half with brown stripes, mostly on outer side. Basitarsi yellow, brown apically; tarsomeres 2 dark brown; tarsomeres 3 yellow, with base and apex brown. Tarsal claws yellow. Cerci yellowish brown, yellow basally.

Male

Unknown.

Female

FWs and HWs well developed, longer than the body; HWs longer than FWs.Dorsal field venation regular, made of 11 regularly spaced and parallel longitudinal veins, and of regularly spaced transverse veins, making regular alignments of squared or rectangular cells. Venation ( Fig. 11A ): 3 anal veins not bifurcated; CuP bifurcated 2 times; CuA bifurcated 5 times; MP very close to CuA along basal third of its length; intermedian area regular, without transverse veins, visible dorsally over FW mid length. Lateral field: area between MA and R wide, crossed by transverse veins; R bifurcated 14 times. FWs light yellow, transparent, densely covered with very short, golden setae; veins ochre, marked with brown, CuP, CuA, MP and MA lighter. HWs brown, including the veins. Subgenital plate as in P. faponensis n. sp. (see below), wider than high, the posterior margin deeply concave. Subgenital plate and sternites yellowish. Ovipositor very short; ornamentation of valves apex as in other species of the genus, but ventral valve teeth quite wide, especially the most basal one ( Fig. 11B, C ), and apex of dorsal valves clearly separate by a deep furrow ( Fig. 11B ).

Female genitalia. Copulatory papilla small, sclerotized only ventrally and having the shape of a horse-shoe ( Fig. 11 D-F).

Measurements

See Table 10.

Figures

FIG. 10. — A-D, Phaloria pentecotensis n. sp., maxillari palpi (A), dorsal disc (B) and lateral lobe (C) of pronotum, and colouration of head lateral side (D); E-J, Phaloria faponensis n. sp., tibia III, inner apical and subapical spurs (E) and outer apical spurs (F), colouration of head lateral side (G) and head dorsum (H), dorsal disc (I) and lateral lobe (J) of pronotum. Scale bars: 1 mm.

FIG. 11. — A-F, Phaloria pentecotensis n. sp.; A, female forewing dorsal field venation; B, C, female ovipositor, lateral (B) and ventral (C) views of right valves, ventral valves marked with grey; D-F, female copulatory papilla, dorsal (D), ventral (E) and lateral (F) views; G-N, Phaloria faponensis n. sp.; G, H, female forewing venation, at base of dorsal field (G) and lateral field (H); I, Female subgenital plate; J-L, female copulatory papilla in dorsal (J), ventral (K) and lateral (L) views; M, N, female ovipositor in lateral (M) and ventral (N) views, ventral valves marked with grey. Scale bars: A, G-I, 1 mm; B, C, 0.2 mm; D-F, J-N, 0.1 mm.