Geoffagraecia gwinganna Rentz & Su, 2020

Rentz, Dcf & Su, You Ning, 2020, Studies in Australian Tettigoniidae: New Fully-winged Agraeciini From Northeastern Australia (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae; Conocephalinae; Agraeciini), Zootaxa 4743 (3), pp. 301-336 : 315-319

Geoffagraecia gwinganna Rentz & Su , gen. et sp. nov.

( Figs 7 A–C, 8A–N, 13D, E; Map 2 ; Table 1 )

ANIC Number; Gen. Nov. 26, sp. 1

Geoff’s Gwinganna Katydid

4 Named for Geoff Monteith for his efforts and pursuit of topics orthopterological. Feminine gender.

Description

Holotype male. Label 1. “ 28.11S 153.23E ‘Gwinganna’, Lookout Junction, 6km SWbyS of Tallebudgera , QLD. 18- 023 April 1995 D. Rentz, W. Lee & M. Upton, Stop 94-3”. 2. “ ANIC database #14008714”. Holotype in Australian National Insect Collection , Canberra .

Differential Diagnosis. Overall body shape and size small and robust ( Figs 7A, B ). Colour of all specimens deep, richly green in head, pronotum, legs and dorsum of abdomen. Tegmina and wings lighter green or greyish and with minute speckles. Precostal area of tegmen with a few cells dark brown ( Fig. 8G ); antennal scape and pedicel dark olive green on cephalic face ( Fig. 8B ), much lighter green on caudal face; membranous portion of fore femur black ( Fig. 8C ), this colour extending slightly onto femur, tibia dark brown to black at each end of auditory tympanum; middle femur with similar dark membranous portion and with a single small dark brown spot on each side of adjacent femur; hind femur with similar black membranous portion, adjacent portion with a small black patch extending onto ventral surface ( Fig. 8D ). Eye brown, base not rimmed with yellow. Male cercus distinctive ( Figs 8E, F ), boat-shaped, with small subapical tooth; subgenital plate much longer than broad, styles elongate ( Fig. 8I ), slightly decurved and longer than length of one side of median incision. Female cercus very elongate, slender, tip gently decurved; subgenital plate short, with narrow, shallow V-shaped median incision. Ovipositor very short, falcate, both surfaces unarmed ( Figs 7C , 8N ). Male tenth tergite ( Fig. 8H ); titillators apically bearing a hood ( Fig. 8J ). Stridulatory region and file very small ( Fig. 13E ), Wing well developed. Both sexes capable of flight.

Head. Head strongly slanting, produced well above pronotum; frons smooth, shiny, without carinae or punctations; frontal fastigium absent; fastigium of vertex short, spike-like as in Greenagraecia species, not extending greatly forward, lateral ocelli at base on each side, median ocellus small, faintly indicated between antennal bases. Eye situated high on head, bulging. Antennal scape elongate, about 2.5 x as long as pedicel; flagellum slightly longer than length of body.

Thorax. Pronotum with surface shining, with minute punctations or indentations ( Fig. 7A ); surface of disk without well-defined sulci; lateral lobes shallow ( Figs 7A, B ), ventral margin rimmed, gradually inclining cephalad, posterior portion covering most of thoracic auditory tympanum. Prothorax with a pair of minute to slightly larger, widely spaced knob-like or spiniform processes; meso- and metathorax not modified, caudal margins sub-angularly produced.

Legs. Legs moderately elongate. Fore coxa armed with an elongate spine. Foreleg with femur slender, distinctly laterally compressed basally, surface shining but appearing minutely wrinkled, ventral surface unarmed ( Fig. 8C ); tibia somewhat expanded on each side of auditory structure, dorsal surface unarmed, ventral surface with 6 spines on each side. Midleg about the same length as foreleg, femur slightly laterally compressed, ventral surface armed on anterior margin with 2–4 minute spines positioned distally, posterior margin unarmed; tibia unarmed dorsally, ventral surface with 6–7 minute spines on each margin. Hind leg with femur slender with surface shining, minutely wrinkled, ventral surface armed only on external margin with 3–4 minute spines; tibia with many elongate spines on both margins of dorsal surface, ventral surface with a much small number of similar spines; apex of tibia with 2 spines on both dorsal and ventral margins. Genicular lobes of fore and middle femora appearing unarmed but fore femur with a minute spine on anterior margin of ventral surface, hind femur armed on both sides with a substantial spine. Hind femur extending to or slightly beyond abdomen at rest.

Wings. Tegmina elongate, slender, apically acute ( Fig. 8G ), costa absent, costal region normal, with large irregular cells, veins not especially thickened; stridulatory region ( Fig. 8G ) hidden by pronotum, very small, mirror without central venation; stridulatory vein short, poorly indicated dorsally, file ( Fig. 13E ) with the larger lamellar teeth positioned apically; bearing 104 teeth. Wing well developed with both sexes capable of flight.

Abdomen. Tenth tergite well produced, caudal margin not incised, undulating. Cercus rather simple ( Figs 8E, F ), boat-shaped, a small internal tooth positioned subapically. Phallic complex; titillators with arms parallel, apically bearing a membranous hood, base narrowed and feebly serrate along the dorsal margin ( Fig. 8J ). Subgenital plate much longer than broad, styles elongate, about as long to slightly longer than one side of median incision.

Female. Differs from male in following characters. Size slightly larger, tenth tergite with deep narrow median sulcus; cercus elongate, hirsute, apically slightly decurved ( Fig. 7C ); subgenital plate longer than broad, apex with shallow V-shaped median incision ( Figs 8L, M ). Base of subgenital plate appearing to not have an opening or pit. Ovipositor falcate and short ( Figs 7C , 8N ), unarmed on both surfaces.

Coloration. Overall coloration dark, deep green except tegmina greyish with dark spots in some cells; wing grey. Frons greenish yellow, mandibles dark brown to black. Antenna with scape and pedicel darker on cephalic surface than caudal surface, flagellum light brown. Legs green; fore middle and hind femora and tibiae with distinctive marks ( Figs 8C, D ); tarsi uniformly greyish or light brown. Tegmen with costal region with cells slightly darker than the rest, veins greyish green.

Specimens Examined. Paratypes. Queensland. 28 O 11’S 153 O 23’E ‘Gwinganna’, Lookout Junction, 6 km SWbyS of Tallebudgera, 18–23.iv.1995 (DCF Rentz, W Lee, M Upton, Stop 94-3, 1 male, 1 female, ANIC). New South Wales. 28 O 37’S 153 O 19’E Big Bend Floral Reserve, Gibbergunya Rd, Whian Whian State For. Res., NNE of Lismore, 19.xi.1981 (DCF Rentz, MS Harvey, Stop 58, 1 female, ANIC). 31 O 41’S 152 O 41’E The Bird Tree, Middle Brother State For, nr Kendall, 16.xi.1983, (DCF Rentz, MS Harvey, Stop 50, 1 male ANIC).

Comments. G. gwinganna is not uncommon in the understorey vegetation that borders wet sclerophyll forests. As with others in this group, the katydids are active after dark where they are opportunists and forage on vegetation feeding on a variety of animal and plant material. This species is easily distinguished from other similar agraeciines by the combination of the stridulatory portion of the male tegmina being hidden under the caudal margin of the pronotum, shape of the male cercus, the hooded male phallic complex and the falcate ovipositor. Additional characters are provided in the key. Specimens from New South Wales did not differ significantly in several morphological characters and are considered conspecific.

The specimen from Big Bend Floral Reserve bears a morphological anomaly in that the right fore femur bears a small tarsus ( Fig. 8K ) at its tip. There is no tibia on the right foreleg.

Judging by our experience with other members of this tribe, we would not be surprised to find additional species of Geoffagraecia in similar habitats in south-eastern Queensland and north-eastern New South Wales.

Figures

MAP 2. Known distribution of two agraeciine species. - Greenagraecia cooloola gen. et sp. nov.yGeoffagraecia gwinganna gen. et sp. nov.

FIG. 7. Morphological characters of Geoffagraecia gwinganna gen., sp. nov. A, male. B, male, note abdominal colour. C, ovipositor and lateral view female abdomen.

FIG. 8. Morphological characters of Geoffagraecia gwinganna gen., sp. nov. A, frons, holotype male. B, fastigium of vertex and antennal segments, male. C, foreleg, holotype male. D, hind femur, note spine and colour, holotype male. E, male left cercus, dorsal view. F, male left cercus, internal view. G, tegmen, holotype male. H, tip of abdomen, holotype male. I, subgenital plate, holotype male. J, male phallic complex, holotype. K, odd tarsal development, see text. L, subgenital plate, female paratopotype. M, same, Big Bend. N, ovipositor, paratopotype.

Fig. 13. Scanning electron micrographs of stridulatory files of agraeciine species (scale bar: 1 mm). A, Greenagraecia attenuata, Kuranda. B, G. attenuata, Daintree, Boardwalk. C, G. cooloola, paratopotype. D, Geoffagraecia gwinganna, Bird Tree. E, G. gwinganna, paratopotype. F, Barbaragraecia unicorn, Longlands Gap. G, B. richardsoni, paratopotype. H, B. richardsoni, Kuranda.