Macroscirtus kekeunoui Simeu-Noutchom & Heller, 2022

Simeu-Noutchom, Alain, Heller, Klaus-Gerhard, Affa’A, Glwadys Zang, Wandji, Alain Christel & Nzike, Marcelle Mbadjoun, 2022, Review of the genus Macroscirtus Pictet, 1888 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) with the description of a new species, Zootaxa 5188 (2), pp. 133-144 : 139-140

Macroscirtus kekeunoui Simeu-Noutchom & Heller sp. nov.

Figs. 5 , 6 ; Tables 2 , 3

Material examined. Holotype ♂: Cameroon, Mpem and Djim National Park, secondary forest, coll. SIMEU NOUTCHOM Alain.

Paratypes. 4 ♂♂, 4♀♀ Cameroon, Mpem and Djim National Park, secondary forest,coll. SIMEU NOUTCHOM Alain .

All types in reference collection of Zoology Laboratory, University of Yaoundé I.

Diagnose. Similar to M. kanguroo , but hind femora with mottled brown external face, internal face completely pale yellow (completely dark in kanguroo); subgenital plate indentation edge straight.

Etymology. Named to honor Prof. Kekeunou Sévilor for his great contributions to insect ecology and taxonomy research in Cameroon.

Description ( Table 2 ), ( Fig. 5 ): Male. Body large, brown to black, somewhat mottled with light yellow. Head 1.5 longer than wide, weakly globose; fastigium fairly wide, slightly protuberant, yellowish. Eyes rounded, protruding, 4.12 mm apart, ocellus visible between compound eyes, on the front’ extension of a yellow spot ( Fig. 5 ). Antennae thin, 2.2 times longer than the body. Pronotum as long as wide, with a straight anterior edge, slightly concave posterior edge; meso and metanotum protruding and with a pointed apex, slightly angular.Abdomen brown to black; subgenital plate elongated horizontally, twice as long as the cerci, apex deeply and angularly notched, indentation 1.6 times deeper than broad, indentation edge straight; styles almost nil. Cerci not exceeding half of the subgenital plate, rather thick at the base, abruptly thinned, curved laterally and internally towards the apical third, apex ending in fine points, not touching. Fore and mid legs long, brown to black. Posterior legs strongly developed, hind femurs robust, with mottled brown external face and entirely pale yellow internal and ventral face ( Fig. 5 ); lower edges armed with 5 external and 4 internal spines in apical half; hind tibia almost as long as the femur, bearing on average 15±2 spines both on its internal and external faces. Tegmina exceeding half of abdomen, but not reaching penultimate abdominal segment, rounded at apex, light brown with some yellow spots, weakly veined, comprising a single thick vein dividing the tegmina obliquely. Hind wings reaching almost half of the tegmina.

Female. Similar to male, but slightly larger. Tegmina and hind legs more developed in the female than in the male ( Table 2 ). Ovipositor long, slightly curved, sharp at the apex, with smooth edges.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Macroscirtus kekeunoui sp. nov.: (holotype): (a) male habitus, (b) female habitus, (c) male subgenital plate (d) male face, (e) male notum, (f) hind femur

FIGURE 6. Distribution of the genus Macroscirtus in Africa