Diponthus electus ( Serville, 1838 )

Pocco, Martina E., Lange, Carlos E. & Cigliano, María Marta, 2023, Relationships and taxonomy of the genus Diponthus Stål (Orthoptera: Acridoidea Romaleidae), Zootaxa 5336 (1), pp. 33-81 : 57-58

Diponthus electus ( Serville, 1838)

( Figs. 3i, j, 7a, b, 8h, 9a, b, 10h, 11h, 12a, b, and 13).

Acridium electum Serville, 1838 [1839]: 67 (Holotype, male, Uruguay, Montevideo, MNHN Paris)

Diponthus electus: Walker, 1870: 637 ; Kirby, 1910: 381; Rehn, 1913: 334; Carbonell et al. 2023; Cigliano et al. 2023.

Diponthus maculiferus ( Walker, 1870) n. syn.

Acridium maculiferum Walker, 1870: 622 , 639 (Holotype, male, Uruguay, Montevideo, BMNH London NH Mus.)

Diponthus maculiferus: Kirby, 1910: 381 ; Liebermann, 1955: 337; Otte, 1995: 44; Cigliano et al. 2023.

Eynisacris extranea Walker, 1870: 639 (Holotype, male, Uruguay, Montevideo, BMNH London NH Mus.); Kirby, 1910: 381 (= Diponthus maculiferus Walker )

Nomenclatural comments. Based on the comparison of the original descriptions, photographs of type specimens, and materials examined from the distribution range of the species ( Uruguay) the synonymy of D. electus and D. maculiferus is formally established here.

Diagnosis. Similar to D. dispar , from which it differs by the following characteristics: male cerci short, tapering towards the apex, curved downwards, dorsally straight, with a slight concavity ventrally, apex curved downwards, barely reaching the end of epiproct ( Fig. 9a). Epiproct elongated, with tubercles on the posterior margin; furculae smaller with broader tips, slightly acute, placed apart from the midline ( Fig. 9b). Dorsal valves of aedeagus curved downwards only at their apices; dilated apex ( Figs. 10h, and 11h). Valves of cingulum hook-shaped ( Fig. 10h). Cingulum wide V-shaped; zygoma thin ( Fig. 11h). Epiphallus with lophi parallel to the bridge, extended but without reaching the posterior processes of the lateral plates ( Fig. 12a, b). Prosternal tubercle not so laterally compressed, with wider apex. Tegmina with discal area greenish-yellow, medial area transparent, anal area green ( Figs. 3i, j, and 8h); with transverse veins delimiting semiregular cells ( Fig. 8h). Hind wings burgundy color. Smaller insects ( Fig. 3i, j).

Redescription and chromatic characters, and material examined. See Appendix 1

Measurements (in mm). Body length: males: 26.8 (25–29); females: 38.3 (37–39). Hind femur length: males: 15 (14–16); females: 20.3 (20–21). Tegmina length: males: 22 (20–23); females: 30.3 (28–33).

Distribution. This species is distributed in Uruguay (Rivera, Tacuarembó, Paysandú, Montevideo) ( Fig. 13).

Observations. Pictet & Saussure (1887) cite the presence of D. electus in Argentina as “confins de la Patagonie (G. Claraz)”, and Rehn (1913) cites it for Misiones. However, from the descriptions provided by these authors, we consider that these records actually correspond to D. dispar .