Amorphopus notabilis Serville, 1838
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https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/jor.29.33717 |
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lsid:zoobank.org:pub:647877CD-F043-4952-8419-20D0F18EA28C |
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https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C1B43B39-04D5-5B00-86AD-24BEA7A0FF0C |
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Amorphopus notabilis Serville, 1838 |
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Amorphopus notabilis Serville, 1838 View in CoL Figs 1 View Fig. 1 , 2 View Fig. 2 , 3 View Fig. 3 , 12 View Fig. 12
Neotype
COLOMBIA • ♀; Amazonas, PNN Amacayacu; 03°44'19"S, 70°13'7"W; C. Rodríguez leg (CAUD).
Description
Head. Not protruding from the body; face very distinctly oblique (Fig. 1B, C View Fig. 1 ); antennae filiform with 15 segments, inserted below the eyes; vertex anteriorly truncated and equal in width to one of the eyes; frontal costa with a wide scutellum between the lower part of the eyes, slightly compressed-elevated, sinuate below; eyes globose, not prominent; posterior ocelli placed between the inferior part of the eyes (Fig. 1B View Fig. 1 ). Thorax. Meso-pleura expanding to the sides and covering the coxae in dorsal view. Pronotum. Macropronotal and strongly depressed dorso-ventrally. Lateral view. Median carina slightly undulated on prozona and extended to pronotal disc apex, prozonal carina and humero-apical carina visible, reaching the sulci; tegminal and ventral sinus present; length of the infrascapular area mid-sized covering to first abdominal tergite; humeral angles obtuse (Fig. 1A View Fig. 1 ). Dorsal view. anterior and posterior margins truncated, also the first one undulated; prozonal carina visible; lateral lobes of pronotum ampliate and projected sideways, with the margins undulated and with a blunt spine (Fig. 1D View Fig. 1 ). Wings. Tegmina and hind wings developed; tegmina ovoid, hind wings as long as the pronotum apex, opaque with the apical veins between the C and Sc yellowish. Legs. Fore and middle femora rectangular, longer than wide and with margins undulated (Fig. 1E, F View Fig. 1 ), fore and middle tibiae narrow and short. Hind femur with the pre-genicular tooth slightly developed, small foliose plate present between the ventro and dorso-external carinae (Fig. 1D View Fig. 1 ), hind tibia narrow and with few spines on the meso-distal portion. Abdomen. Narrow and slim, subgenital plate with the distal edge wavy with a rounded prolongation in the middle (Fig. 1G View Fig. 1 ); ovipositor with narrow valves and with denticulations of moderate size (Fig. 1H View Fig. 1 ).
Male. Similar to the female, except for the post-abdomen characters (Fig. 2A-F View Fig. 2 ). Subgenital plate moderately prolonged, with the dorsal edge straight and the apex rounded (Fig. 2G View Fig. 2 ), conical and robust cerci (Fig. 2H View Fig. 2 ).
Coloration. Predominantly white with scattered gray spots. Face and ventral surface of the body black with scattered whitish bands; pronotal disc from the level of the third pair of coxae with gray stripes, which extend and alternate towards the posterior area of the pronotum; fore femur white, fore tibia black with a white ring in the mesal region; femur and mid tibia, as well as the basal half of the hind femur, light pink, distal half of the hind femur white with gray stripes in similar appearance to the pronotal disc (Fig. 3 View Fig. 3 ).
Variations
The margin undulations of the fore and mid femora may be more conspicuous in some specimens and the lateral lobes with the posterior angles may have sinuato-dentate or serrato-crenate margins.
Measurements (in mm)
Female. CFP: 14.0-15.5; PL: 13.6-14.2; PLB: 5.5-5.9; FF: 2.6-2.8; FL:2.1- 2.3; MFL: 2.7-3.0; MTL: 2.6-2.9; HL: 6.0-6.2; HW: 1.7-1.9; HL: 4.3-4.6. Male. CFP: 11.5-12.2; PL: 11.2-11.5; PLB: 4.8-5.1; FF: 2.3-2.5; FL: 2.0-2.1; MFL: 2.9-3.1; MTL: 2.0-2.2; HL: 5.1-5.5; HW: 1.8-2.0; HL: 3.9-4.1.
Specimens examined
Museum specimens. BRAZIL • 1♀. Amazonas, Manaus, Reserva Adolpho Ducke; 02°55'49"S, 59°58'31"W; 14-18 Apr. 2010, Rede entomológica, V. Linard leg.; AM-010, km 26 • 2♀♀; same collection data as for preceding; Coleta manual, D.M.M. Mendes leg. • 1♂. Amazonas, Manaus. ZF2, km 14; 02°35'21"S, 60°04'55"W; 1-15 Apr. 2016, Malaise grande no chão, J.A. Rafael and F.F. Xavier F leg. • 1♀. Amazonas, Tefé, Terra Firme; 03°25'19"S, 64°37'05"W; 10-26 Jun. 2016, malaise, J.A. Oliveira, D.M.M. Mendes and J.A. Rafael leg. (INPA). Photographic records. ECUADOR • Sumaco NP, Bigal River Forest Reserve (Arthur Anker). PERU • Huánuco, Tingo María ( Huamán Cuespán et al. 2014).
Comments
Currently A. notabilis has two synonyms: Tetrix cnemidotus Burmeister, 1838 and Amorphopus caiman Saussure, 1861, both synonymized by Günther (1939). A. testudo Saussure, 1861 is an immature specimen ( Günther 1939) and currently the type depository is unknown ( Hollier 2013); this specimen could possibly be an immature of A. notabilis , but we kept it as nomen dubius.
Bruner (1910) separated A. griseus Bolívar, 1887, A. notabilis Serville, 1838, A. cnemidotus (Burmeister, 1838), and A. caiman by the size of the females and the coloration of the specimens. The size and coloration in this species may vary, depending on the area, availability of resources, and camouflage strategies ( Cadena-Castañeda 2011a, b, 2013a, b, c). Moreover, colors of specimens preserved in museums may vary by virtue of the preservation method used, such as storage in alcohol, which usually makes the specimens lose its color ( Cadena-Castañeda 2012, Cadena-Castañeda and Páez 2013). By studying the type specimens, the synonymy of these species is confirmed, and we propose that Amorphopus griseus Bolívar, 1887 syn. nov., be considered as a new synonym under A. notabilis .
To the two remaining species of the genus, the following nomenclatural acts are proposed: 1. A. gibbosulus Walker, 1871 is transferred to Metrodora Bolívar, 1887, and it is synonymized with Metrodora reticulata (Hancock, 1906) syn. nov. (originally described as Platytettix reticulatus Hancock, 1906) under Metrodora gibbosulus (Walker, 1871) comb. nov. This synonym is proposed by comparison of the type specimens of both species. It is observed that there is no variation in the shape of the fastigium of the vertex, since both species have a broad frontal costa, similar to the species of the subfamily Cladonotinae . The pronotum has a curvature in the prozone that rises significantly; the apex of the pronotum is curved slightly upwards and the lateral lobes of the pronotum project towards the sides, with the inferior margin triangular in shape. Since these diagnostic characters are present in specimens of both species, they cannot be maintained as separate specific entities, much less belonging to different genera.
2. Similarly, A. humeralis (Walker, 1871) (= Tettix humeralis ) is transferred to Crimisus Bolívar, 1887, and it is synonymized with Crimisus bolivianus (Bruner, 1913), syn. nov. (originally described as Allotettix bolivianus Bruner, 1913) under Crimisus humeralis (Walker, 1871), comb. nov. The type specimens of both species are females, but, unfortunately, the legs in the holotype of A. humeralis are missing, so the legs were not compared. Nevertheless, both species share the same characteristics: narrow frontal costa, lower margins of the pronotal lobes rounded, without projecting to the sides as in the previous case, subgenital plate triangular, with a small prolongation at the apex. The aforementioned characters are observed in the type specimens of both species, indicating that they belong to a single species. Since they do not have expanded anterior and middle femora, it is ruled out that they belong to the Amorphopini tribe, fitting better in the genus Crimisus .
The two species described by Walker (1871), A. gibbosulus and A. humeralis , were not studied again and were not included in the Orthoptera Species File until Dr. J. Tumbrinck photographed the specimens and updated the information. If historical authors like Hancock and Günther had access to those specimens, for example, certainly they would have considered them to be synonyms. The nomenclatural acts were carried out by comparing the type specimens and their photographs; A. gibbosulus and A. humeralis do not meet the diagnostic characteristics to be included in Amorphopus , but they are similar to Metrodora reticulata syn. nov. (now Metrodora gibbosulus ) and Crimisus bolivianus syn. nov. (now Crimisus humeralis ), respectively, in diagnostic structures such as pronotum structure, face, and terminalia shape.
Finally, the genus Amorphopus is kept monotypic and its known distribution is extended through the Amazonian slope, similarly to Pterochroza ocellata (Linnaeus, 1758), a species that was once considered several different species, but is now known to be a single, very variable species ( Xiberras and Ducaud 2004).
A neotype specimen is designated as the carrier-name of the species and is supported by the following reasons ( ICZN 1999 Art. 75): 1. The location of the only type specimen is unknown. It was deposited in NHRS, but Josef Tumbrinck visited that collection and did not find the type specimen (pers. comm.) "Some of the types of Serville are lost. Some of them are in Paris. But Josip Skejo did not find Amorphopus notabilis in Paris. So - today - the type is lost". The holotype female specimen has as type locality "Brazil, Para". This specimen could not be traced from its original description (Arts. 75.3.1., 75.3.4.), but the author provided figures, and when compared with the neotype specimen here designated, it agrees with the drawings by Serville (1838). 2. Not having specimens from the type locality, a female from a nearby and available locality of similar geological characteristics was designated (Arts. 75.3.5, 75.3.6; recommendation 75A ICZN). 3. A detailed description is written of the neotype that is in agreement with the general idea of the identity of this species, differentiating itself from other taxa, ensuring the recognition of the designated specimen, and conveying a consensus in identifications and wide distribution that characterizes the species, ensuring that most identifications from the past are correct (Arts. 75.3.2, 75.3.3, 75.3.5; recommendation 75B). 4. The neotype is deposited in CAUD, a collection of a recognized scientific institution, which maintains adequate facilities to preserve the types and makes them accessible for study (Art. 75.3.7).
Behavioral notes. -
The Brazilian specimens were collected only in non-flooded ombrophilous forests (Terra Firme). In this environment they are usually found on the trunk and branches of fallen trees, where, due to their coloration and flattened body, they are easily confused with the tree’s bark. Once physically stimulated, the specimens exhibited thanatosis behavior, where the individual remained immobile, leaving its femurs parallel to the body, with the lobes of the femora that mimic foliage lying alongside the body and the tibia folded against the femora. Thus, the body of the insect is very similar to a small fragment of bark, and it remains in this position for several minutes even on physical stimulation. Only after several minutes did the observed specimens leave the thanatosis behavior and move (D. Mello Mendes pers. obs.).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
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