Lerneca inalata inalata ( Saussure, 1874 )

Desutter-Grandcolas, Laure & Faberon, Léo, 2020, Phalangopsidae crickets (Orthoptera, Grylloidea) from the Mitaraka biological survey, French Guiana, Zoosystema 42 (32), pp. 739-797 : 763-764

Lerneca inalata inalata ( Saussure, 1874)

( Figs 9K , 14-15 E-G, Tables 9, 10)

Diplacusta inalata Saussure, 1874: 435 .

Diplacustes inalatus – Saussure 1878: 545.

Lerneca inalata – Kirby 1906: 63. — Hebard 1928a: 20. — Chopard 1968: 265. — Desutter-Grandcolas 1992a: 118.

REMARK

The most informative characters given by Saussure (1878) to separate Lerneca inalata ( Saussure, 1874) from L. fuscipennis ( Saussure, 1878) are the shape of the pronotum (trapezoidal, twice as wide as long, against more quadrangular in L. fuscipennis ), the shape of the FWs (very wide, against little widened in L. fuscipennis ), the shape of the stridulatory file (transverse and straight, against short and oblique in L. fuscipennis ) and the slender shape of the legs. These characters are similarly well-contrasted between L. inalata inalata and Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp. (see Figs 13 , 14 ). All the subspecies recently described in L. inalata differ from the description given by Saussure for pronotum, FW and file shapes, as shown by figures in original papers ( Gorochov 2007, 2014; Lima et al. 2016). The taxonomic status and relationships of these taxa will have to be reconsidered with the analysis of the type of L. inalata , and through molecular studies

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype by original designation. Suriname • 1 ♂ ( ZMUH, not examined).

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — French Guiana • 1 ♂; Monts Tumuc-Humac, Massif du Mitaraka, Savane roche; 54.4347 O 2.2387 N; alt. 390 m; 23.II.-10.III.2015; F. Legendre & S. Hugel leg.; fn. SH206, de nuit; MNHN • 1 ♂; Roche de Kourou ; MNHN .

Venezuela • 3 ♂ 9 ♀, identified Diplacustes varipes Walker, 1869 by A. Finot, ex coll. Finot; MNHN .

DIAGNOSIS. — See Saussure (1874) and Saussure (1878) for general morphology and coloration, and Desutter-Grandcolas (1992a) for characters of male and female genitalia.

HABITAT. — During the Mitaraka expedition, L. inalata has been found de nuit in bedrock grown savannas, i.e., in dryer and more open areas than the surrounding forest.

COMPLEMENT TO DESCRIPTION

General morphology

TIII serrulation as on Table 9. HWs longer than FWs in both males and females by 4-5 mm.

Male

Stridulatory file with 175 – 200 teeth (see Table 10).

Male genitalia

As in Desutter-Grandcolas (1992a, figures 28-29) and on Fig. 15 E-G.

Female (after specimens from Venezuela)

Ovipositor straight, shorter than FIII and TIII. Subgenital plate short and transverse; distal margin almost straight.

Female genitalia

Copulatory papilla elongate and plicate, as in all the species of the genus; abruptly narrowed distally as in Lerneca inalata beripocone Lima, Martins & Lhano, 2016; widened before apex ( Fig. 9K ).

Measurements (in mm)

See Table 10.

REMARK

The specimens from French Guiana (Mitaraka, Kourou) and Venezuela correspond to Saussure’s 1874 description of L. inalata except for their larger size ( Table 9). The specimens originating from Venezuela are also lighter in coloration and their HWs go well beyond FW tip by a mean length of 4.4 mm. HWs are absent or rudimentary in the type of L. inalata according to Saussure’s description, while they are shorter than FWs in Guianese specimens, showing a possible polymorphism for wing length, as documented in other cricket species. All observed specimens have very similar male genitalia (compare Desutter-Grandcolas 1992a, figures 28, 29 and Fig. 15 E-G); female genitalia are known for Venezuelan specimens only ( Fig. 9K ).

Figures

FIG. 9. — Luzaridella miniata n. sp. (A-E), Luzaridella maculata n. sp. (F-H), Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp. (I, J) and L. inalata inalata Saussure, 1874 (K): A, B, male forewing, dorsal (A) and lateral (B) fields of L. miniata n. sp. C-H, female copulatory papilla, in dorsal (C, F), ventral (D, G) and side (E, H) views of Luzaridella miniata n. sp. (C-E) and Luzaridella maculata n. sp. (F-H); I-K, female copulatory papilla,in dorsal (I) and side (J, K) views of Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp. (I, J) and Lerneca inalata inalata Saussure, 1874 (K). Scale bars: 1 mm.

FIG. 14. — Lerneca ssp.: A-C, habitus in dorsal view of Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp. (A) and Lerneca inalata inalata (Saussure, 1874), from Mitaraka (B) and Venezuela (C); D-F, coloration of face and maxillary palpi in Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp., male (D) and female (E), and Lerneca inalata inalata, male from Mitaraka (F). Scale bars: 1 mm.

FIG. 15. — Lerneca ssp.: male genitalia in dorsal (A, E), ventral (B, F) and side (C, D, G) views of Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp. (A-C), Lerneca fuscipennis (Saussure, 1874) (D) and Lerneca inalata inalata (Saussure, 1874) (E-G) from Mitaraka. Abbreviations: see Material and methods.

FIG. 13. — Lerneca mitarakensis n. sp.: male paratype MNHN-EO-ENSIF10758 foraging in the leaf litter. Photo: Sylvain Hugel.