Brachyntheisogryllacris abbreviata (Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1888 )

Ingrisch, Sigfrid, 2018, New taxa and records of Gryllacrididae (Orthoptera, Stenopelmatoidea) from South East Asia and New Guinea with a key to the genera, Zootaxa 4510 (1), pp. 1-278 : 133-135

Brachyntheisogryllacris abbreviata (Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1888)

Figs. 45 A–G

Brachyntheisogryllacris abbreviata evolutior ( Griffini, 1909a) syn. nov.

Material examined. India: Tamil Nadu, Kodaikanal , 1 male (holotype of G. a. evolutior) (Brussels RBINS) ; unknown locality (without label), 1 male (identified as G. a. evolutior by Griffini) (Paris MNHN) ; India: Tamil Nadu, Kodaikanal, P. Castets, 1 female, labeled "type de Brunner 220" (holotype of G. abbreviata ) (Paris MNHN) .

Discussion. Brunner (1888) probably studied only a single female when he described G. abbreviata as he did not give any variation in measurements and did not describe any male characters. The locality given was only " India " with "Mus. Madrid" as type depository. That female probably came from the Pantel collection that was deposited for a greater part in MNHN Paris although part of the collection remains in MNCN Madrid. The male of G. abbreviata was later described by Karny (1929d) after a male from Kodaikanal in the Griffini collection, while in Madrid he found 1 male and 2 females without locality ( Karny 1929b). One of the females in MNHN Paris from Kodaikanal is labeled as " type de Brunner 220" and this female should be regarded as the type seen by Brunner. Griffini (1909a) recognized the great similarity of a male from Kodaikanal in RBINS Bruxelles with the female described by Brunner as G. abbreviata , but gave it a new name as a subspecies G. a. evolutior. Later he identified another male without locality label in MNHN Paris as belonging to that subspecies.

Since the types of both taxa have the same type locality and they agree in size and morphology except for sex specific characters, especially the coloration of the head that is largely shining black with a very characteristic yellow figure at the forehead, I regard the types of both taxa as female and male of the same species. Thus G. a. evolutior becomes a new synonym of B. abbreviata .

Description (mainly based on holotype of B. a. evolutior). Small species with reduced wings. Head: Face ovoid; forehead nearly smooth with few shallowly impressed dots. fastigium verticis wider than scapus; ocelli little distinct; subocular furrows present ( Fig. 45C ). Abdominal tergites two and three each on both sides with two oblique rows of small stridulatory pegs (0–2, 10–13;>3–9, 14–16; n = 1; Fig. 45G ).

Wings covering about half of abdomen leaving basal abdominal tergites uncovered in middle but overlapping in apical area ( Fig. 45A ). Tegmen ( Figs. 45 B–D): Radius single branched, without RS. Media anterior free from base, unbranched. Cubitus anterior at base single branched, dividing in apical half into two branches that fuse again before tip. Cubitus posterior unbranched and free throughout but on right tegmen with a short approach to An1. With three anal veins.

Legs: Fore coxa with a spine at fore margin; fore and mid femora unarmed; fore and mid tibiae with four pairs of not very large ventral spines and one pair of smaller ventral spurs; hind femur strongly thickened, with 5 external and 2 internal spines on ventral margins; hind tibia with spaced spines on both dorsal margins, ventral margins with one pre-apical spine; with 3 apical spurs on both sides.

Coloration. General color light brown. Head with vertex and frons shining black including, in area from fastigium verticis to about halfway between antennal scrobae and clypeo-frontal suture, a large shining yellow spot, its shape resembling the face of a rabbit or the outline of a fly in dorsal view; genae, mouthparts and antennae light brown ( Fig. 45C ). Tegmen semi-transparent with veins and veinlets dark brown.

Male. Eighth abdominal tergite prolonged, in lateral view with curved dorsal surface; from middle of hind margin with broad band-shaped projection to tip of divided ninth tergite, connected laterally by a narrow membranous zone to lateral parts of ninth tergite. Ninth abdominal tergite broadly interrupted along midline with about medial third replaced by the prolongation of the eighth tergite; those lateral parts are somewhat vaulted and obviously moveable against prolongation of eighth tergite. At lateral margins of ninth tergite, just before rounded apical tips of the divided apical parts, with a stout, incurved spine with acute tip ( Fig. 45 E–F). Tenth abdominal tergite narrow band-shaped, not divided in middle. Subgenital plate with shortly bilobate apical margin; long styli inserted at apico-lateral angles.

Female. General characters and coloration as male. Subgenital plate with subparallel lateral margins, apex bilobate but only little excised between lobes. Ovipositor elongate sickle-shaped, tip subacute without modification.

Measurements (male holotype of B. a. evolutior).—body w/o wings: 14.4; pronotum: 3.1; tegmen: 6.2; hind femur: 6.8; hind femur width 2.2 mm.

Measurements (female holotype after Brunner 1888): body w/o wings: 17; pronotum: 4; tegmen: 6; hind femur: 7.8; ovipositor: 9 mm.

Figures

FIGURE 45. Brachyntheisogryllacris abbreviata Brunner, 1888: Male holotype of B. a. evolutior Griffini.—Habitus lateral view (A), do. dorsal view (B), face (C), tegmen (D), abdominal apex in apical view (E) and in oblique lateral view (F), stridulatory pegs on second and third abdominal tergites (front is right, G).