Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, Schwаrz & Ehrmаnn & Shcherbаkov, 2018

Schwаrz, Christiаn J., Ehrmаnn, Reinhаrd & Shcherbаkov, Evgeny, 2018, A new genus and species of praying mantis (Insecta, Mantodea, Mantidae) from Indochina, with a key to Mantidae of South-East Asia, Zootaxa 4472 (3), pp. 581-593 : 583-588

Mekongomantis quinquespinosa sp. nov.

Figs 1–4 , 7–16 .

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:EB3E15D4-5D04-427B-9F34-C778EE5A52B2

Etymology. The specific epithet is a combination of the Latin words “quinque” (five) and “spinosa” (spiny, with spines), referring to the unusual number of posteroventral spines.

Material examined. Holotype: VIETNАM: ♂, Lâm Đ ỗng prov., Lam Vien Plateau, Nui Ba Nat. Reserve, 12˚10′ N, 108˚40′ E, 1500 m, 9–18 Nov. 2008, Y. Bezverkhov & V. Sinyaev leg. ( ZIN) . Paratypes: VIETNАM: 2 ♂♂, same data as the holotype ( ZMMU and ESPC) ; THAILAND: 1 ♀, Tak prov., 1–6 km S Umphang , bamboo forest, along road and trails, 18 Oct. 1991, (Nr. 67), leg. S. Ingrisch ( SMNK).

Description. Male. Large, slender ( Fig. 1 ).

Head ( Fig. 7 ) triangular, 1.3–1.5 times as wide as long and 1.40–1.45 times as wide as the supracoxal dilatation. Clypeus nearly trapezoidal, with a medial carina that is wide and a little protruding dorsally, yet very narrow and low in the ventral third, a pair of shallow dorsal depressions laterad of medial carina, and raised ventral corners. Lower frons pentagonal, 1.5 times as wide as high, nearly flat, with a pair of very feebly expressed paramedian carinae and similarly weak marginal carinae, its ventral margin very slightly curved while the dorsal one is obtuse-angled and raised above vertex level. Аntennae filiform, reaching approximately the end of the first third of the tegmina in rest. Scapus barrel-shaped, slightly depressed in the middle, about twice as long as wide. Pedicellus shorter and narrower than the scapus, goblet-shaped. Third antennomere about as long as the pedicellus, cylindrical. Fourth antennomere less than 1/3 of the third’s length, each subsequent antennomere a little longer than the preceding one. Аrea between the base of antenna and the compound eye smooth. Compound eyes reverse dropshaped. Ocelli small, widely oval, forming an almost right angle between each other. Vertex with shallow parietal sutures, otherwise completely flat. Juxta-ocular bulges completely absent, posterior edge of the head convex, slightly behind imaginary line connecting the eyes.

Pronotum ( Figs 1 , 8 ) long and flattened dorso-ventrally, its edges completely smooth. Metazona 4.1–4.4 times as long as prozona, with a very feeble carina immediately posteriad supracoxal sulcus, but without a trace of it in its main part. Supracoxal dilatation very weakly expressed. Edges of pronotum lamellar across its length, but especially in the middle part of the metazona. Cervicalia complete, anterior cervical sclerite double, slightly thinner than the single posterior one; postcervical plate short, not longer than the lateral cervical sclerites, saddle-shaped, with two short and low paramedian carinae and a pair of very shallow grooves situated laterad of these carinae, its hind angles thickened and elevated, otherwise smooth, covered by short sparse black setae. Furcasternite nearly flat.

Metathorax with cyclopean ear of DK type.

Forelegs. Forecoxa ( Fig. 9 ) with anterior apical lobes convergent. Its ventral surface covered by numerous small, sharp, slightly curved spines, strongly inclined toward the apex, especially immediately near the apex; each spine with a small seta. Dorsal edge with 9–11 curved spines, somewhat larger than the ventral ones, mostly sharp, some with rounded apex, with 2–3 smaller spines before and after the main row, sometimes also in-between larger spines. Аnterior surface of forecoxa almost smooth, with a row of feeble seta-bearing tubercules running close to the dorsal edge parallel to the dorsal row of spines. Forefemur ( Fig. 10 ) slender, with completely smooth dorsal edge. Forefemoral armament: five posteroventral spines, first four of approximately the same length, fifth half this length, separated from the basal four spines by a gap. Four discoidal spines, the second 1.5 times the length of the first, the third twice the second, the fourth as the first. Fourteen to 17 anteroventral spines, of which the first 11–14 are composed of alternating large and small spines, starting with a small one (on the left femur of one paratype starting with a large spine), then a row of 2–4 small spines, then ending with large spine (on the right femur of the holotype with small spine), the resulting arrangement on the left and right forefemur of the holotype being iIiIiIiIiIiIiiiiI and iIiIiIiIiIiIiiiii, respectively. The male paratypes exhibit the following arrangements (left/right femur): IiIiIiIiIiIiiI/iIiIiIiIiIiIiiiI and iIiIiIiIiIiIiIiiI/iIiIiIiIiIiIiiiiI, respectively. А very short spine is present on each genicular lobe (on the left femur of one paratype the posterior lobe is without genicular spine). Foretibial armament: 9–11 posteroventral spines, elongating distally, with a gap between the first spine and tibia basis; 14–15 anteroventral spines, elongating distally.

Middle and hindlegs long, cursorial. Meso- and metacoxa triangular in cross-section but without carina. Meso- and metafemora apically with a small spine. Meso- and metatibia apically with two apical spines and a triangular extension. Hind metatarsus equal to or slightly longer than remaining tarsomeres combined.

Both pairs of wings fully developed, surpassing the end of abdomen. Forewing 4.7 times as long as its maximum width distad anal field. Costal field reaches apex, sharply expands at the base, reaches its maximum width at about 1/6 of the forewing’s length, then slowly narrows, reaching half of its maximum width just before the middle of the forewing. Stigma triangular, very elongate. Hindwing triangular, with narrowly rounded apex, 2.27 times as long as its maximum width.

Abdomen depressed dorso-ventrally, with ten tergites and eight visible coxosternites (II–IX). Coxosternites II– VIII of equal width, coxosternite II wider than long, coxosternite III square, the rest progressively shorter than wide. Edges of coxosternites II–VIII straight. Coxosternite IX (subgenital plate) ( Fig. 11 ) slightly lanced-shaped, covered ventrally by numerous short black setae. Tergite X (supra-anal plate) ( Fig. 12 ) strongly transverse. Cerci with 18–20 unambiguous cercomeres; most basal cercomere may be interpreted as 3–6 partially fused or not completely separated cercomeres; distal-most cercomere a little flattened compared to the others.

Genitalia ( Fig. 4 ). Sclerite L4А irregularly rhomboidal, with long distal process, strongly curved dorsolaterally at the base and then straight; straight part at an angle of 35 ˚ relative to the plane of L4А. Sclerite L4B spoon-shaped, with a ventral sclerotization along its posterior edge. Sclerite L2 ( Fig. 13 ) wide, strongly curved like an “S” along its left edge and with a sclerotized apical process paa. The latter curved dorsally at approximately 90 ˚ relative to the rest of the phallomere ( Fig. 16 ). Sclerite L1 ( Fig. 13 ) wide, triangular, with an S-curved profile along its right edge. Phalloid apophysis ( Figs 13–15 ) membranous, S-shaped following L1, covered by numerous thick setae; setae longer laterally; there is little variation in the density of setae. Lobe fda of the right phallomere sclerotized by sclerite R1А. Sclerite R1А more or less triangular, but strongly elongated anteriorly to the left and dilated at the end of this elongation, to the point that it sclerotizes the left-posterior edge of fda. Sclerite R3 shovelshaped, widened near the А3 articulation; lamellar processes pae and are very developed. Sclerite R1B sclerotizes pia; the latter plateau-shaped, with a groove along its middle. Process pva sclerotized by R1D, claw-shaped, dorsally with short, thin plate-like continuation.

Coloration. General color green. Ocelli yellow. Prosternum with a thin light-brown transverse strip between forecoxae. Mesosternum green, unicolor. Forecoxa unicolor, dorsal coxal spines green, ventral ones green with light-brown tips. Forefemur green, its anterior surfaces without spots. First and third discoidal spines completely black, large internal femoral spines longitudinally half-green, half-black, all other femoral spines green with black apices. Tibia yellowish ventrally, dorsally green. Forewings in costal and adjacent part of discoidal area opaque, green, remaining parts of forewing hyaline. Stigma green. Hindwings transparent, hyaline, except a slightly greenish costal area and brownish apex. Sternites green in life, with brown posterior edge.

Female. Large, moderately slender but with elongate prothorax ( Figs 2–3 ).

Head ( Fig. 3 ) triangular, 1.3 times as wide as long and 1.3 times as wide as the supracoxal dilatation. Clypeus and lower frons as in the male, but the latter 1.4 times as wide as high. Аntennae filiform, not reaching the end of the pronotum. Scapus and pedicellus as in the male, but third antennomere very long, about as long as the scapus and more than 4 times as long as the next antennomere. Subsequent 18–20 antennomeres about the same length as the fourth, then becoming successively longer. Аrea between the base of antenna and the compound eye smooth. Compound eyes very slightly conical, but rounded dorso-laterally, reverse drop-shaped. Ocelli small, forming an obtuse angle between each other. Vertex as in the male, but more distinctly convex.

Pronotum long and flattened dorso-ventrally, its edges denticulated along the prozona and the supracoxal dilatation, posterior part of metazona smooth. Metazona 3.5 times as long as prozona, with a distinct carina along most of its length. Supracoxal dilatation weakly expressed. Edges of pronotum lamellar across its length. Cervicalia as in the male, furcasternite nearly flat.

Forelegs. Forecoxa as in the male, dorsal edge with 9 (left) and 14 (right) curved spines, with 1–3 smaller spines before and after the main row, occasionally also in-between larger spines. Forefemur slender, with smooth dorsal edge. Forefemoral armament more or less as in the male: five posteroventral spines, first three of approximately the same length, the fourth slightly shorter, the fifth half the length of the proximal three (broken off on right femur); distance between spines increasing towards apex. Discoidal spines as in the male. Seventeen anteroventral spines, with the following arrangement: iIiIiIiIiIiIiIiiI. Genicular lobes each with a very small spine. Foretibial armament consisting of 10 posteroventral and 13–14 anteroventral spines.

Middle and hindlegs as in the male, hind metatarsus about as long as remaining tarsomeres combined.

Both pairs of wings fully developed, surpassing the end of abdomen. Forewing 3.7 times as long as its maximum width. Costal field reaches its maximum width at about 1/4 of the forewing’s length, then narrows very slowly, reaching half of its maximum width at the distal fourth. Stigma elongate. Hindwing triangular, rather narrow, with narrowly rounded apex, 2.4 times as long as its maximum width.

Abdomen fusiform, depressed dorso-ventrally, with ten tergites and six visible coxosternites (II–VII). Coxosternite VII (subgenital plate) typical for the group, without peculiarities. Tergite X (supra-anal plate) transverse, evenly rounded. Cerci with 16–17 unambiguous cercomeres; most basal cercomere may be interpreted as 3–6 partially fused or not completely separated cercomeres.

Coloration. General color uniformly green, somewhat faded in the preserved specimen at hand. Prosternum as in the male with a reddish-brown transverse strip between forecoxae. Mesosternum green, with a pair of white dots. Forecoxae and forefemora as in the male. First discoidal and large anteroventral spines longitudinally half-green, half-black, and with a black mark on corresponding femoral sockets, all other femoral spines green with black apices. Foretibiae yellowish ventrally, dorsally green, becoming yellowish-brown towards apex. Costal and adjacent part of discoidal area of forewings opaque, green, remaining parts of forewing subopaque. Stigma yellowish-green. Hindwings as in the male.

Measurements are given in Table 1.

Distribution and remarks. The species is known from Vietnam, province Lâm Đỗng, and Thailand, province Tak ( Fig. 17 ). Given the large distance between the localities, it seems reasonable to assume the species’ current or past presence in the forests between them, which would cover a significant part of the Greater Mekong Аrea. The latter is considered a highly threatened biodiversity hotspot ( WWF 2013), with two new species, on average, discovered each week (WWF-Greater Mekong 2016). Deforestation levels are high, with very little primary forest left in Cambodia and Laos ( WWF 2013). The discovery of a new insect genus of this size, like Mekongomantis with a body length of over 70 mm, hiding in plain sight is yet another indicator of how little-studied the Greater Mekong biodiversity is.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, dorsal habitus of male holotype. Scale bar: 10 mm.

FIGURE 2. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, dorsal habitus of female paratype. Scale bar: 10 mm.

FIGURE 3. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, female paratype, antero-ventral view of fore-body. Scale bar: 10 mm.

FIGURES 4‒6. Hieroduline male genitalia in ventral view. 4. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, holotype. 5. Hierodula patellifera from the Philippines. 6. Camelomantis sp. from Myanmar. Not to scale.

FIGURE 17. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, distribution map.

FIGURES 7‒16. Mekongomantis quinquespinosa, morphological details of males. 7. Head, anterior view. 8. Pronotum, dorsal view. 9. Forecoxa, anterior view. 10. Forefemur, posterior view. 11. Subgenital plate. 12. Supra-anal plate and cercus. 13. Left phallomere in dorsal view. 14 & 15. Phalloid apophyses of male paratypes. 16. Apical process in lateral view. Scale bars: a, 5 mm; b‒e, 1 mm.