Liturgusa guyanensis La Greca, 1939

Svenson, Gavin J., 2014, Revision of the Neotropical bark mantis genus Liturgusa Saussure, 1869 (Insecta, Mantodea, Liturgusini), ZooKeys 390, pp. 1-214 : 37-41

Liturgusa guyanensis La Greca, 1939

Liturgusa guyanensis : La Greca 1939: 2-5, fig. 1; Terra 1995: 54; Ehrmann 2002: 207; Otte and Spearman 2005: 133; Agudelo et al. 2007: 116.

Liturgusa guyannensis : Jantsch 1999: 48.

Type.

LOST, but listed repository Natural History Museum Zoological Section 'La Specola', University of Florence.

Original type locality.

Guyana, Babooncamp (Demerara), October 1931.

Neotype.

Male. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Neotype locality.

Guyana: Iwokrama, Forest Research Station, 1 km N. Kurupukari, 14-19 January 1996, canopy fog sample of Mora tree, W. Tschinkel coll. (Lat. 4.672093, Long. -58.685606).

Material examined.

Liturgusa guyanensis La Greca, 1939.

Taxonomic history.

Described in 1939 by Marcello La Greca, Liturgusa guyanensis was only subsequently treated in taxon lists and has received no revisionary attention. La Greca only included the type locality, but no repository for the type. It is presumed that the specimen remains in an Italian collection. In addition, the species was cited in subsequent works with the repository listed as the Natural History Museum Zoological Section 'La Specola', University of Florence. Therefore, Luca Bartolozzi was contact in hopes of locating the specimen. After an extensive search it was not located in Florence. Luca Bartolozzi contacted museums in Genoa, Milan and Rome looking for the specimen, but nothing was located in these collections. After consulting with Luca Picciau, of the Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali, Torino, in search of the type specimen of Liturgusa charpentieri , described and deposited there by Giglio-Tos (1927), it was learned the specimen was loaned to La Greca, but after his death his entire collection, presumably including loans, was sold to the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale, Milan. Chasing this lead, Fabrizio Rigato and Michele Zilioli, both of the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale, Milan, were contacted, but neither the type of Liturgusa charpentieri nor Liturgusa guyanensis were located in the collection. In addition, the eminent mantodean systematist, Prof. Francesco Lombardo of the Università degli Studi di Catania, was consulted throughout this search, but he as well was not able to locate the type. Therefore, in satisfying Article 75.3 of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a specimen has been located that matches the original description and illustrations provided by La Greca (1939) and represents this distinct species within Liturgusa . Although La Greca’s type was female and the designated neotype is male, a female specimen has also been located and is treated herein, which demonstrates a match with the original name-bearing type. A male is designated as the neotype herein as a measure of consistency across the entire genus, which now includes holotype descriptions of male genital structures. Finally, the neotype is not from the original type locality, but from just south within Guyana and still on the eastern side of the Guyana Shield, within the same elevational range, forest type, and climate conditions.

Diagnosis.

Similar to Liturgusa cayennensis and living in sympatry with at least some populations of the species, Liturgusa guyanensis have a far more sculpted pronotum, a unique vertex of the head (straight with lateral depressions near the parietal sutures), and evenly mottled forewings (without the large pale or whitish regions that are obviously present on Liturgusa cayennensis and Liturgusa lichenalis ).

Description.

Male. (Fig. 6A) N=1: Body length 23.28; forewing length 15.42; hindwing length 12.31; pronotum length 6.19; prozone length 1.85; pronotum width 2.83; pronotum narrow width 1.92; head width 5.46; head vertex to clypeus 2.20; frons width 2.07; frons height 0.82; prothoracic femur length 6.41; mesothoracic femur length 7.69; metathoracic femur length 7.57; pronotal elongation measure 0.30; pronotal shape measure 0.46; head shape measure 0.40; frons shape measure 0.39; anteroventral femoral spine count 14; anteroventral tibial spine count 10; posteroventral tibial spine count 7.

Head (Fig. 40E): Slightly transverse, the juxta-ocular protuberances moderately pronounced, the apex in the lateral half; the vertex is convex, slightly higher than the dorsal margin of the eyes. Frontal suture with a medial carina forming a continuous arc, the region just ventral depressed for most of the length. Ocelli small and protruding prominently on small cuticular mounds; the lateral ocelli oriented outward. The carina on the frons pronounced, the medial region just ventral to the carina depressed and sloped ventrally. Clypeus transverse, the upper margin convex, the lower margin straight; the central carina strongly pronounced and straight. Antennae pale at the base, the flagellum absent on specimen. The vertex and juxta-ocular protuberances pale and with brown speckled markings; the area immediately adjacent to lateral ocelli black; the ventrolateral margins of the frons with a dark brown margin. Palpi are pale.

Pronotum (Fig. 47E): Short and squat with a defined supra-coxal bulge; dorsal surface with disperse, small tubercles. Prozone squat with convex margins widening anterior to supra-coxal bulge before narrowing to the anterior margin; the margins smooth. Metazone with sweeping concave lateral margins, the nadir at the three quarter point from the supra-coxal bulge, then widening slightly to the posterior margin; margins with small, disperse tubercles; posterior margin with a slight medial emargination, almost straight; the dorsal surface of the posterior third of the metazone depressed; tubercles more common in the posterior half. Pale with strong black marks across the surface, two prominent black marks laterally just anterior to the supra-coxal sulcus in the prozone.

Prothoracic Legs: Femur squat and robust with a near straight dorsal margin; strongly defined pale to dark banding on posterior (external) surface; anterior (internal) surface with a very thin black band running medially from the base to terminus, a black mark dorsal to the band at the midpoint and some thickening of the line near the femoral brush; the ventral surface pale. Posterior surface of femur with few tubercles. A shallow femoral pit to accommodate terminal posteroventral tibial spine positioned just distal to the first most proximal posteroventral spine and in line with the most distal discoidal spine; pit is pigmented darkly. Posterior prothoracic femoral genicular spine much smaller than posteroventral spines, originating distal to the beginning of the genicular lobe. Prothoracic tibial posteroventral spines with the first (proximal) smallest and the fourth through sixth of similar length, the second and third are slightly longer. Prothoracic coxae smooth, the anterior surface with a very small, black mark in the proximal half and adjacent to the medial line.

Meso- and Metathoracic Legs: Femora with ventral (posterior) carina; dorsal (anterior) carina pronounced. Mesotarsi with first segment slightly longer than the remaining segments combined.

Wings: Forewings evenly mottled with dark and light brown coloration; the costal region without strongly defined banding, mostly matching the color patterns of the discoidal region; veins are pale, contrasting with the cell colors. Forewings asymmetrically colored; one being mottled as described the other is darkened significantly with a rust tone, the mottled pattern still visible; extending just beyond the abdomen. The discoidal region of the hindwings opaque, a pale rust color proximally that fades to a dark, rusty opaque color in the distal half; the anal region of the hindwing smoky and translucent; the terminus of the discoidal region projecting beyond the distal margin of anal region, the wing appearing elongate.

Abdomen: Broad, widening until the fifth tergite before a gradual posterior narrowing; a smooth, brown and black colored dorsal surface. Tergites without posterolateral tergal projections. Supra-anal plate transverse, a broadly rounded terminus with a medial emargination. Subgenital plate irregularly rounded and without styli.

Genital Complex (Fig. 51C.1): The main body of ventral left sclerite (L4A) with a convex terminal margin that tapers to a medially positioned, blunt point that is well sclerotized, but lacking a distal process (pda). The apofisis falloid (afa) of the main body of dorsal left sclerite (L4B) elongate, slender and curved, terminating in a blunt, but narrow point; the apical process (paa) short, cylindrical and curved, the terminus with a rounded end. The right dorsal phallomere (fda) of the first sclerite of right phallomere (R1) tapers to a rounded, membranous terminus; the ventral plate (pia) long with strongly defined grooves; the ventral process (pva) tooth-like and curved at the proximal base, the distal tip narrowing with a rapid constriction towards the end.

Redescription.

Female. (Fig. 6B) N=1: Body length 26.83; forewing length 18.06; hindwing length 14.03; pronotum length 7.10; prozone length 2.09; pronotum width 3.50; pronotum narrow width 2.32; head width 6.63; head vertex to clypeus 2.97; frons width 2.79; frons height 1.11; prothoracic femur length 7.61; mesothoracic femur length 8.01; mesothoracic tibia length 5.92; mesothoracic tarsus length 5.80; pronotal elongation measure 0.29; pronotal shape measure 0.49; head shape measure 0.45; frons shape measure 0.40; anteroventral femoral spine count 14; anteroventral tibial spine count 10; posteroventral tibial spine count 7.

Head (Fig. 40F): Approximately as broad as wide, the juxta-ocular protuberances very large, the apex in the middle; the vertex is straight, but with two depressions just medial to the parietal sutures, higher than the dorsal margin of the eyes. Ocelli very small and protruding prominently on small cuticular mounds, region between ocelli, ventral to the frontal suture and dorsal of the frons is depressed. Clypeus transverse, the upper margin convex, the lower margin rounded. Antennae pale at the base, the flagellum fading to brown gradually.

Pronotum (Fig. 47F): Prozone squat and broad with convex margins widening prominently anterior to supra-coxal bulge before narrowing quickly to the anterior margin; the margins with small tubercles. Metazone with concave lateral margins, the nadir at the three quarter point from the supra-coxal bulge, but a slight bulge in the posterior half present that pushes the margins laterally and interrupts the continuity of the concave margins; margins with small, numerous tubercles.

Prothoracic Legs: Femur with anterior (internal) surface with a black band running medially from the base to terminus, a black mark dorsal to the band at the midpoint and some thickening of the line near the femoral brush, but the overall band may be interrupted medially. Prothoracic tibial posteroventral spines with the first (proximal) smallest and the fourth through sixth of similar length, the second and third are longer.

Meso- and Metathoracic Legs: Mesotarsi with first segment shorter than the remaining segments combined.

Wings: Costal region of forewing widened. Forewings symmetrically colored; extending the length of the abdomen. The terminus of the discoidal region of the hindwing projecting slightly beyond the distal margin of anal region, the wing appearing slightly elongate.

Abdomen: Broad, widening from first segment until the beginning of the distal half (segment 5) when the lateral margins narrow gradually to the terminus, the middle being the broadest region. Tergites without posterolateral tergal projections. Supra-anal plate slightly transverse, and evenly rounded lobe.