Cuspicera, Ingrisch, 2023

Ingrisch, Sigfrid, 2023, New and little-known genera and species of Agraeciini (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Conocephalinae) from New Guinea, Zootaxa 5249 (2), pp. 190-212 : 202-203

Cuspicera alata sp. nov.

Fig. 6

Holotype (male): Papua New Guinea: New Guinea (NE), Chimbu Province, Mt. Karimui, elev. 1500 m (-6.50268693, 144.82264), 21.iv.1977, coll. J.L. Gressitt —depository: Honolulu ( BPBM).

Diagnosis. C. alata sp. nov. differs from C. luxoria sp. nov. by the black vertical band on the face missing in C. luxoria ; the male cerci are of different shape and provided with internal projections from subapical area and in basal half instead of at end and at base. The titillators have the ventral-apical margins compressed and narrow but with apical area modified instead of widened throughout and simple (in C. luxoria ), the stridulatory file is provided with 183 teeth instead of only 106 teeth and for that has the lateral margin of the tegmen extended by a projecting flap while it is simply rounded in C. luxoria .

Description. Medium sized species. Pronotum prolonged, with vaulted apical area covering stridulatory area of tegmen; lateral lobes narrow with a projecting ventral lobe in about mid-length ( Fig. 6B ). Prosternal spines of medium length; mesosternal lobes subspinous with obtuse tip; metasternal lobes subangularly rounded; hind knees with a single apical spine on both sides. Femora with the following number of spines on ventral margins: fore femur 5 anterior, 5 posterior; mid femur 5 anterior, 2 posterior near base; hind femur 7 anterior over the whole length, without posterior spines. Hind knee lobes with one spine on both sides.

Male. Pronotum lateral lobes with ventral expansion in about mid-length and with dorsal anterior area flat, posterior area swollen. Tegmina almost completely reduced to stridulatory apparatus, covered by pronotum when at rest; stridulatory file on underside of left tegmen 1.2 mm long, with small and very densely arranged teeth that count over 180 teeth or about 150 teeth per 1 mm, and even in the area with the largest teeth count 71 teeth per 0.5 mm or 14 teeth per 0.1 mm ( Fig. 6E ). Tenth abdominal tergite markedly wider than long with concave anterior and posterior margins; disc along midline little subsided but resulting furrow bridged in mid-length and there about as high as laterally ( Fig. 6H ). Cerci short conical, just before end with a compressed internal process with convex apical margin and on proximal margin with a semicircular projection from basal area; in or little before mid-length of cercus with another compressed and rounded internal projection ( Fig. 6I ). Subgenital plate central area with approaching lateral margins, lateral margins upcurved and then widened to compressed, convex, lateral rims; central area at base little excised and along midline with indication of a faint carina; apical margin angularly excised ( Fig. 6H ), swollen on both sides and downcurved, carrying small styli. Titillators with basal area curved laterad, simple band-shaped but little widened, central area long and narrow, forming a sclerotized, dark band that widens apically and gives rise to a short, about triangular process, while the central area of the band curved laterad and distad and supports a roughly triangular membranous surface that is densely covered with clinging hairs. That structure is in subapical area bent again and forms a roughly long-oval membranous sacculus with rugose surface and narrow end ( Figs 6F–G ).

Female unknown.

Measurements (1 male).—body w/o wings: 22; pronotum: 8.3; tegmen: 4; hind femur: 11.5 mm.

Etymology. The new species is named for the movable apical projections of the titillators that in ventral-apical view look like wings.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Cuspicera alata sp. nov. male holotype:A, frons, legs and sternites in anterio-ventral view; B, habitus lateral view; C, wings with left tegmen opened; D, left tegmen in top view; E, stridulatory file; F–G, titillators in ventro-apical view (F) and view on apical area (G); H, end of abdomen in dorso-apical view; I, right cercus in dorsal view.—Scales 10 mm (A–B), 1 mm (C–H), 0.5 mm (I).