Oecanthus salvii Collins, 2020

Collins, Nancy & Schneider, Ken R., 2020, Oecanthus salvii sp. nov. (Orthoptera: Gryllidae: Oecanthinae): A new tree cricket species from Modoc County in northeast California, Journal of Orthoptera Research 29 (1), pp. 91-99 : 91

Oecanthus salvii Collins sp. nov.

Etymology. -

Specific epithet after Lodovico (Ludovico) Salvi, an Italian philosopher and theologian, who included illustrations of a male tree cricket, a female tree cricket, and a stem with oviposition holes, in his article published 270 years ago ( Salvi 1750). In Voices of a Summer Night ( Lioy 1866), Salvi was recognized as being the first person to publish an article about a tree cricket. His 1750 article was published 13 years before the first tree cricket was officially described ( Oecanthus pellucens Scopoli, 1763). The common name, sage tree cricket, is given because these tree crickets have similar coloration to the sagebrush host plants at Lake Annie.

Type verification. -

The genus Oecanthus was determined as the specimens had spines on the hind tibiae.

Type-specimen. -

Holotype ♂, alcohol vial. Lake Annie, Modoc County, California, USA, 41°54'24"N, 120°06'31"W, elevation ca. 1530 m, arid, sagebrush, N. Collins leg., 25 July 2019. Body length (in mm) 15.4; tegminal length 11.0; tegminal width 5.0; pronotal length 2.2; distal pronotal width 2.0; hind femur length 8.0; cerci 5.4. Four antennal markings per side with two vertical black antennal markings on the pedicel, and one each vertical and horizontal black mark on the scape. Deposited at California Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Paratypes. -

3 ♂ and 1 ♀. Located in same area as holotype, 24-25 July 2019. 1 ♂ and 1 ♀ deposited at CAS, 1 ♂ Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, and 1 ♂ Florida State Collection of Arthropods. Two nymphs retained by NC for possible future DNA analysis.

Description. -

Face creamy white to faint yellowish. Pedicel with two unequal-sized vertical lines, and scape with one vertical black line medially and one horizontal arched or right-angled black mark near the top of the segment. Remainder of antennae segments tan with darker brown or grey rings. Eye color whitish to dark cream. Palpi translucent pale tan. Pronotum light green. Tympanal membrane on fore tibiae whitish. Wing color of both sexes pale greenish. Ventral abdomen whitish or pale tan. Tibiae and femora translucent pale green with black setae. Cerci straight and pale green.

Male (N=4). -

Hind wings do not extend beyond distal edge of tegmina; cerci do extend beyond the tegmina. Metanotal gland with bilateral horizontal structures with tiny bristles situated midline in the triangular-shaped gland opening as in Fig. 51 . Copulatory blades slender with a deep notch between them as in Fig. 41 . Subgenital plate with pointed distal tip as in Fig. 43 .

Measurements (in mm). - Body length 15.4-16.8; tegminal length 11.0-11.5; tegminal width 5.0-5.5; pronotal length 2.2-2.6; distal pronotal width 2.0-2.2; hind femur length 8.0-9.0; cerci 5.2-5.6; stridulatory file 0.8 (N=2). Right tegminal stridulatory teeth 50-51 (N=2).

Female (N=1). -

Latticed vein pattern on translucent greenish wings. The tip of the ovipositor extends to the tips of the cerci.

Measurements (in mm). -

Body length 17.0; pronotal length 2.3, distal pronotal width 2.0; hind femur length 9.0; cerci 5.2; ovipositor length 5.5.

Behavior. -

The Lake Annie area was not explored after dark when it is expected these tree crickets would be singing in the wild. No singing was detected during the daytime by either KS on two occasions or by NC on two consecutive days. In captivity, males did not start singing until dusk or later. The color of sage tree crickets allows them to blend remarkably well with the rabbitbrush and sage shrubs they inhabit. Shrubs were intensely visually scoured by NC, but no tree crickets were detected. Only with the use of sweep netting were tree crickets found by both KS and NC.

Figures

Figs 51 - 59. Metanotal glands comparisons. 51. Oecanthus nigricornis; 52. O Oecanthus argentinus; 53. O. celerinictus; 54. O. forbesi; 55. O. salvii sp. nov.; 56. O. quadripunctatus; 57. O. laricis; 58. O. pini; and 59. O. walkeri.

Figs 37 - 42. Shapes of copulatory blades in (v) - ventral and (d) - dorsal views. 37. Oecanthus walkeri; 38. O. nigricornis; 39. O. quadripunctatus; 40. O. argentinus; 41. O. salvii sp. nov.; and 42. O. celerinictus.

Figs 43 - 50. Male subgenital plates. 43. Oecanthus salvii sp. nov.; 44. O. walkeri; 45. O. celerinictus; 46. O. quadripunctatus; 47. O. pini; 48. O. nigricornis; 49. O. forbesi; and 50. O. argentinus.