Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas, 2020

Yong, Sheyla, Desutter-Grandcolas, Laure, Teruel, Rolando & Leguin, Elise-Anne, 2020, A new genus and species of cricket from eastern Cuba: the first Antillean true Eneopterinae (Orthoptera: Gryllidae: Eneopterinae), Zootaxa 4858 (2), pp. 261-273 : 263-264

Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas , new genus

Figure 9

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Type species: Antillobinthus inexpectatus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas , n. sp., by present designation; male gender.

Diagnosis. Size medium (19–23 mm), habitus stocky. Both sexes brachypterous. Alae present in both sexes, minute and with few but well developed veins. Males: metanotal glands absent. FW slightly surpassing anterior margin of abdominal tergite I, with standard structures (e.g. harp, mirror) little differentiated; stridulatory file with 43–46 teeth. Genitalia small, subtriangular in shape; lophi very well developed, curved inwards with tips in contact, inner surface with small denticles and many long, rigid setae; ectophallic arc wide, not divided medially and shaped like an inverted V; endophallic sclerite large, shaped like an inverted teardrop, its distal margin U-shaped and with two medium-sized, digitiform lateral lobes; ectophallic apodemes wide, not surpassing rami; pseudepiphallic parameres widely separated, heavily sclerotized, with distal lobe short and round; rami sinuose and not separated from the pseudepiphallic plate by membranes; endophallic cavity wide. Females: FW smaller than in males, not reaching anterior margin of abdominal tergite I. Ovipositor heavily sclerotized, longer than abdomen, strongly compressed and feebly punctate, apex lanceolate and unarmed. Genitalia: copulatory papilla very small, heavily sclerotized, strongly compressed (dorsal and ventral views) and navicular in shape (lateral view), ventral margin with a conspicuous tooth at the base of the subdistal notch that encircles spermathecal duct opening.

Etymology. The generic epithet is a Latinized composite word, which combines the name of the insular region where this genus occurs (The Antilles), with part of the name of one of its putative close relative Lebinthus Stål, 1877 . It is masculine in gender.

Comparisons. Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas n. gen. is a typical brachypterous member of Lebinthini . The new genus is closely related to the Neotropical Ligypterus Saussure, 1878 and Ponca Hebard, 1928 , but also resembles the Southeast-Asian genus Lebinthus in general appearance (stocky body with short FW). The most obvious characters that distinguish Antillobinthus n. gen. from them, involve external morphological characters plus male and female genitalia.

First, Antillobinthus n. gen. can be distinguished from Ligypterus by the following characters:

1. Vertex and eyes: vertex shallowly convex in shape, eyes less protruding. In Ligypterus , vertex is almost circular and eyes are remarkably more protruding.

2. Male forewing: much shorter (only slightly surpassing anterior margin of abdominal tergite I), with standard structures (e.g. harp, mirror) little differentiated. In Ligypterus, FW are much longer (spanning over 3/4 of abdomen), and the standard acoustic structures are very well differentiated.

3. Female forewing: well separated medially. In Ligypterus, FW are slightly overlapping.

4. Male genitalia: lophi stout and curved inwards with apex touching, endophallic sclerite large and inverted teardrop-shaped. In Ligypterus , lophi are slender and parallel, and endophallic sclerite is wide and semicircular.

5. Female genitalia: copulatory papilla strongly compressed and navicular in shape, with the basal ring relatively small and rhomboidal. In Ligypterus , copulatory papilla is not compressed and cup-shaped, with the basal ring very large and circular.

Second, Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas n. gen. can be distinguished from Ponca by the following characters:

1. Male forewing: much shorter (only slightly surpassing anterior margin of abdominal tergite I), with standard structures (e.g., harp, mirror) little differentiated. In Ponca, FW cover most of abdomen.

2. Male genitalia: very different, especially endophallic sclerite small and narrow, ectophallic apodeme long and wide, and rami almost as long as the rest of pseudepiphallus. In Ponca , endophallic sclerite is long and wide, ectophallic apodeme is short and narrow and rami are much shorter as the rest of pseudepiphallus.

3. Female genitalia: copulatory papilla strongly compressed and navicular in shape, with the basal ring rhomboidal and the ventral tooth and spermathecal duct opening very close to each other in subdistal position. In Ponca , copulatory papilla is not compressed and fusiform, with the basal ring oval and the ventral tooth and spermathecae opening widely separated, the former in subbasal position and the latter in apical position.

Last, Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas n. gen. resembles Lebinthus in general external morphology, but the former can be distinguished from the latter by the presence of hind wings (absent in Lebinthus ). Moreover, male genitalia are very different: much more massive, endophallic sclerite short, ectophallic apodeme wide and rami almost as long as the rest of pseudepiphallus (in Lebinthus , it is more delicate and slender, endophallic sclerite is long and surpasses anterior margin of pseudepiphallus, ectophallic apodeme is shaped as a narrow median crest and rami are much shorter, half as long as pseudepiphallic sclerite). Female genitalia are also distinct: copulatory papilla is strongly compressed and navicular in shape (in Lebinthus it is variable, but always conical to depressed and never navicular in shape).

Distribution ( Fig. 9 ). This genus is endemic from eastern Cuba, with eight known localities scattered across the two main mountain systems: Sagua-Baracoa and Sierra Maestra. Records are available from Santiago de Cuba, Holguín and Guantánamo Provinces, but it is expected to occur also in adjacent areas of Granma Province.

Ecological notes ( Fig. 10 ). All specimens collected by us or with complete and reliable label data, were found in mountain sites within a wide altitude range of 420–1,663 m a.s.l. All localities known also have in common that the vegetation is tall, dense, dark and humid: broadleaf semicaducifolious and evergreen forests, montane rainforest, mixed pine-broadleaf forest and occasionally tree-shaded coffee plantations.

These crickets are typically found during the day in the forest leaf litter. Nevertheless, some specimens have been found at night, climbing onto rock walls and tree trunks. Population density is usually very low, but in summer 2015, a massive daytime outbreak was observed in two mountain localities of the Sierra Maestra: Peladeros (June 17) and El Chorrito (July 1), where active specimens literally covered the forest floor and trails by hundreds and dozens, respectively (Rolando Teruel, personal observation).

Remarks. Due to the paucity of representative samples, only a single species of Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas n. gen. is described here. Nevertheless, the genus is probably more speciose than currently known (see details below and in Fig. 9 ).

Figures

FIGURE 10. Geographical distribution of the New World genera of Eneopterinae: a) tropical America, showing Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas gen. n. (circles), Eneoptera (stars), Ligypterus (triangles) and Ponca (squares), image frame = 14,400 x 7,200 km; b) eastern Cuba, showing the endemic Antillobinthus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas gen. n.: Antillobinthus inexpectatus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolass n. sp. (red symbol) and undetermined populations (yellow symbols), image frame = 380 x 180 km.

FIGURES 8–9. Antillobinthus inexpectatus Yong & Desutter-Grandcolas n. sp., 8. adult male holotype, close-ups of genitalia: a) dorsal; b) lateral; c) ventral.9. adult female allotype, close-ups of genitalia (copulatory papilla): a) dorsal; b) lateral; c) ventral.