Rhicnogryllus fascipes Chopard, 1925

Tan, Ming Kai, Baroga-Barbecho, Jessica B., Japir, Razy, Chung, Arthur Y. C., Wahab, Rodzay Bin Haji Abdul & Yap, Sheryl A., 2020, A taxonomic study on the Bornean and Philippines Sword-tailed Crickets in the genus Rhicnogryllus Chopard, 1925 (Orthoptera: Trgonidiidae; Trigonidiinae), Zootaxa 4763 (2), pp. 217-230 : 221

Rhicnogryllus fascipes Chopard, 1925

Fig. 2

Rhicnogryllus fascipes — Chopard, 1925: 310 > original description of genus. Chopard, 1968: 338.

Rhicnogryllus nr. bipunctatus — Tan et al. (2019b): 12 > record in Siargao Island

Material examined. 1 female (UPLB.19.14), Philippines, Luzon Island, Paete, Barangay Ilaya Norte, UP Land Grant, N14.40015, E121.54217, 312.6± 5.2 m.a.s.l., 0949 hours, 12 May 2019, coll. M. K. Tan, S. A. Yap, & J. B. Baroga-Barbecho. 1 female (Siargao18_60), Philippines, Siargao Island, Barangay Esperanza, Del Carmen, N9.86816, E126.02669. 61.2± 7.9 m, 16 October 2018, 0922 hours, coll. M. K. Tan, S. A. Yap, & J. B. Baroga-Barbecho ( UPLBMNH and ZRC).

Type details. One male and one female unspecific primary type (coll. C. Willemse) from Butuan City, Mindanao, Philippines.

Remarks. The primary types from Butuan City (Mindanao Island) are not present in MNHN (based on MNHN online collection). But we have collected morphologically identical females from Siargao Island (~ 193 km away from Butuan). The females from Siargao and Luzon Islands are indistinguishable from each other and from the original description of the types from Mindanao. It should be noted that morphologically cryptic species can exist and that we should be cautious that the species from Luzon and Siargao Islands may well represent different species from the primary types in Mindanao.

This species is closest to R. bipunctatus from Borneo by the colour patterns but differs by: tegmen without basal white spot but with a narrow transverse band at the base posterior of the apical margin of pronotum.

Distribution. Philippines Archipelago: Laguna in Luzon Island; Siargao Island; Butuan in Mindanao Island

Redescription. External morphology as described above.

Female: Habitus similar to males. Supra-anal plate with tenth abdominal tergite broad trapezoidal, with a longitudinal furrow in the middle, epiproct rounded and setose along apical margins. Subgenital plate broader than long, with apex truncated and narrowly excised in the middle. Ovipositor short, barely reaching apex of cercus; basal half straight and apical half slightly curved dorsad; ventral and dorsal margins dentated; ventral valve surpassing dorsal valve, apex acute.

Colouration: Males dark red, females black. Male with anterior of head (including scapus) black, with a white transverse stripe across the dorsum, including the eyes, dorsum posterior of the stripe red brown in male and black in female. Face black, with a transverse white spot between antennal scapus; with transverse pale band beneath eye and antennal cavity on each side. Palpus with segments red brown in male (probably discoloured) and white in female. Gena pale just beneath eyes, ventrally black. Pronotum dark red brown in male, black in female. Tegmen, with base white; when closed forms a white transverse stripe. Fore and middle femora and tibiae dark red to black; tarsi pale yellow. Hind femur generally white, with a thick black band just before middle and another thinner and in female, another less defined dark band at apical third; apex of hind femur, including knee brown. Hind tibia black, with brown spurs; hind tarsus brown. Thoracic and abdominal tergites and sternites black; cercus, in living specimens, pale or pale blue; tenth abdominal tergite black and epiproct white; subgenital plate pale with tint of red brown. Ovipositor pale basally, dark red brown thereafter.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Live habitus of Rhicnogryllus fascipes female from Luzon (A) and Siargao Island (B), Philippines.