Spalacomimus spec.

Heller, Klaus-Gerhard, Chobanov, Dragan, Warchałowska-Śliwa, Elżbieta & Hemp, Claudia, 2022, Review of song patterns and sound production in armoured ground crickets (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Hetrodini) with karyological data and taxonomic notes, Zootaxa 5120 (4), pp. 451-481 : 475

Spalacomimus spec. near verruciferus

S. near verruciferus differs only slightly morphologically from S. verruciferus distributed further north in Tanzania. In S. verruciferus the “warts“ on the 9th abdominal tergite are conspicuous structures while in S. near verruciferus these structures are low bumps or ridges rather than blade-like warts. Further, the posterior margin of the subgenital plate is differently shaped between these two species. Otherwise, in size and body shape, and the spination of the pronotum, both species are very similar.

Material examined: all TANZANIA, all Manyara Region: 1 male [CH7899 (SR, CHR)], Lossogonoi, Dezember 2014, leg. C. Hemp ; 1 male [ CH 7898 (SF; CHR)], Ruvu Masai Game controlled area. Lager 1, Dezember 2014, leg. C. Hemp.

Bioacoustics. According to the limited data, the species is bioacoustically quite similar to S. stettinensis and S. verruciferus . The echemes seem to be intermediate in length between S. stettinensis and S. verruciferus (29 syllables per echeme), but the SRR is with 14 Hz slower than in both ( Fig. 10I ; see Table 2 ).

Genitalia. The genitalic sclerites ( Fig. 11F ) are similar to that of S. verruciferus .

Chromosomes: 2n = 24 (22 + neo-XY), FN = 25; pairs 1–11 acrocentric, neo-X submetacentric and neo-Y acrocentric (2 males); thin C-positive paracentromeric bands in all autosomes, thick on the neo-X and neo-Y, as well as an interstitial one on the long pair ( Fig. 12K ).

Figures

FIGURE 10. Oscillograms of the calling songs in the genera Eugaster, Eugasteroides and Spalacomimus (figures of S. liberianus based on figures and data from literature; see text). A Eugaster guyoni, B Eugaster spinulosa, C Eugasteroides loricatus, D Spalacomimus liberianus, E Spalacomimus magnus, F Spalacomimus stettinensis, G Spalacomimus talpa, H Spalacomimus verruciferus, I Spalacomimus spec. near verruciferus.

FIGURE 11. Titillators in the genus Spalacomimus. A S. magnus (Gulwe), B S. stettinensis (Lambo Estate), C S. stettinensis (neotype), D S. talpa (Lembeni), E S. verruciferus (Lake Chala), F S. spec. near verruciferus (Lossogonoi).

FIGURE 12. Examples of chromosome number and heterochromatin C-banding of mitotic male (A–C, G–K) and mitotic female complements (D), as well as diplotene/diakinesis (C, E, I on the right), and metaphase I (F) for the following Hetrodini taxa: A Cosmoderus femoralis, 2n = 24 + X0 (CH8626), B Enyaliopsis bloyeti, 2n = 28 + X0 (HE114), C Enyaliopsis carolinus, 2n =24 + neo-XY (CH8625), D Enyaliopsis ephippiatus, 2n = 26 + XX (female CH7849), E Enyaliopsis jennae, 2n = 26 + neo- XY (HE87), F Enyaliopsis spec. 2 Mpwapwa, 2n = 26 + X0 (CH8353), G Gymnoproctus rammei, 2n = 26 + X0 (CH8763), H Gymnoproctus spec., 2n = 26 + X0 (CH7953), I Spalacomimus magnus, 2n = 16 + X0 (CH7945), J Spalacomimus verruciferus, 2n = 22 + neo-XY (CH7897), K Spalacomimus spec. near verruciferus, 2n = 22 + neo-XY (CH7899). Bi-armed chromosomes (meta/submeta/subacrocentric) are marked with numbers (A, C, D, F–I); in the neo-XY system, sex chromosomes form association in diplotene (C) and metaphase I (I); arrowheads indicate interstitial C-bands in 1 (A, E, J, K) and 2 (I) pairs; asterisks (*) marked distal C-bands in 3, 4, 5 (C), 3, 4 (D), 2-heteromorphic (G, H) pair; X = neo-X and Y = neo-Y sex chromosomes. Scale bar = 10 µm.