Roeseliana epirotica, Lemonnier-Darcemont & Darcemont, 2023

Lemonnier-Darcemont, Michèle & Darcemont, Christian, 2023, New data on the distribution of the genus Roeseliana Zeuner, 1941 (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae, Tettigoniinae) in the southwestern Balkans, with description of R. epirotica n. sp., Zoosystema 45 (14), pp. 445-450 : 446-448

Roeseliana epirotica n. sp.

( Figs 2-7 )

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:EFDD4548-A060-4946-A694 AB562AD50F25

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype. Greece • ♀; Mazarakia, Epirus; 30 m a.s.l.; 39°24’1”N, 20°23’44”E; 23.VII.2022; Michèle Lemonnier-Darcemont leg.; MNHN-EO-ENSIF12400 .

Paratypes. Greece • 1 ♂ labelled allotype; same data as for holotype; Michèle Lemonnier-Darcemont leg.; MNHN-EO-ENSIF12401 • 1♂; Morfi, Epirus ; 110 m a.s.l.; 39°17’52”N, 20°27’55”E; 30.VI.2005; coll. ML-D • 1 ♂; Koroni, Epirus ; 9 m a.s.l.; 39°17’21”N, 20°32’18”E; 22.VII.2022; coll. ML-D. Albania • 1♀; Kranë, Delvinë ; 20 m a.s.l.; 39°53’8”N, 20°5’25”E; 6.VIII.2022; coll. ML-D .

ETYMOLOGY. — The species is named after the geographic region where it was found.

DIAGNOSIS. — Females. They differ from R. bispina by the absence of spines on the sternum 6 and 7 and the shape of the subgenital plate ( Ünal 2018). They differ from R. roeselii , R. pylnovi ( Uvarov, 1924) , R. ambitiosa ( Fig. 2 ), R. brunneri Ramme, 1951 , R. azami (Finot, 1892) and R. oporina ( Bolivar, 1899) by the shape of the subgenital plate ( Ramme 1951; Götz 1969; Harz 1969; Gutiérrez-Rodríguez & García-París 2016; Iorio et al. 2019). The trapezoidal shape of the subgenital plate with lobes truncated horizontally is intermediate between that of R. oporina and R. azami but with a much shallower incision and a less pronounced central keel.

Males. They differ from R. roeselii and from R. pylnovi by the shape of the last tergite, of the cerci and of the titillators ( Uvarov 1924; Ramme 1951; Harz 1969; Götz 1969; Gutiérrez-Rodríguez & García-París 2016); from R. oporina by the shape of cerci and of titillators ( Gutiérrez-Rodríguez & García-París 2016), from R. bispina by the basal width of the apical tooth of the cerci ( Harz 1969, Ünal 2018); from R. ambitiosa ( Figs 3 ; 4 ), R. azami and R. brunneri by the shape of titillators and the arrangement of their spines ( Harz 1969). By their last tergite largely indented with narrow and pointed lobes at their apex, they are however close to R. azami , R. oporina and R. ambitiosa . The internal tooth of the cerci is short and placed at ¾ of the cerci; it is barely wider at its base than at the apex as in R. ambitiosa , R. brunneri , R. oporina and R. azami ( Harz 1969, Götz 1969, Gutiérrez-Rodríguez & García-París 2016, Iorio et al. 2019). The shape of titillators is similar to that of R. bispina , but with a different number and arrangement of spines, located at the apex ( Ramme 1951; Harz 1969).

DESCRIPTION

Female holotype ( Fig. 5 )

Specimen in good condition except for the antennae, partly destroyed, and missing tarsi on the forelegs. Size medium, rather in the high range for the genus Roeseliana (body: 24.5; pronotum: 6.5; tegmina: 7.5; hind femur: 21; ovipositor: 8.5). Overall colour light brown with a few black spots on either side of the abdomen forming a longitudinal coarse band, some black spots in continuity on the thorax and a few lower black spots on the right side. Head large, brown, lighter below the vertex.Eyes brown, a thick black stripe above each eye and on both sides of the vertex, bordered laterally by a narrow white line. Fastigium verticis wider than long, its base 1.5 times wider than scapus. Median band of vertex of light colour, bordered by an irregular brown narrow band. General colour of pronotum brown, darker on paranota with outer borders wide and off-white, finely bordered with black on their inner part. Lateral keels highlighted with black. Median keel not well marked in the prozone, more visible in the metazone, main sulcus slightly depressed; posterior margin of pronotum regularly rounded. Tegmina reaching third tergite. Hind femur exceeding the apex of ovipositor, crossed in the middle of its wide part by a black sawtooth pattern. Ovipositor strongly curved, black over 4/5 of its length and very light brown at base. Subgenital plate trapezoidal in shape, wider than high, the lobes truncated horizontally; indentation between these two lobes narrow and shallow, lateral keels not well marked.

Male allotype ( Fig. 6 )

Specimen in good condition. Medium size (body: 19.5; pronotum: 6.5; tegmina: 9.5; hind femur: 17.5). Overall colour brown. Head broad, brown. Eyes brown, a broad black band above each eye and on both sides of the vertex. Fastigium verticis wider than long, with base 1.5 times wider than scapus. Median band of vertex of light colour, bordered by a darker and irregular band. General colour of pronotum brown, much darker on the paranota with wide off-white outer borders. Median keel slightly marked in relief in the prozone, but very light in colour and slightly bordered with dark brown, more prominent in the metazone, faint main sulcus; posterior margin of pronotum regularly rounded. Tegmina slightly exceeding seventh tergite. Posterior femur crossed in the middle of its wide part by a black serrated pattern. Last tergite indented over a large width with a triangular central depression and narrow, pointed lobes. Internal tooth of the cercus short and wide located at ¾ from the base. Styli as long as the distance between the internal tooth and the apex of cerci. Titillators long and thin, on almost all of the apical branch which ends in the shape of a beak. The two branches strongly divergent and each having at the apex the shape of a wide curve on 1/3 of a circle. Near the apex 5 spines more or less marked and aligned on the external part of the titillator.

HABITAT

Roeseliana epirotica n. sp. ( Fig. 7 ) has been found in wet grasslands and wastelands with Arundo sp. and Carex sp. , in the meso-Mediterranean zone of botanists ( Quézel & Médail 2003), between 9 m and 110 m asl, a short distance from the sea ( Fig. 8 ). These are threatened wetlands, in the process of drying up due to more or less intensive pastoralism, by both sheep and goats (Koroni, Greece), both cattle and horses (Morfi and Mazarakia, Greece) or sheep (Kranë, Albania).

MALE SONG

Unknown.

Figures

FIG. 2. — Subgenital plates of females of species with closest distribution: A, Roeseliana epirotica n. sp. ♀ (the plate of the female from Albania is strictly identical); B, Roeseliana ambitiosa (Uvarov,1924) ♀ from the Republic of North Macedonia; C, Roeseliana ambitiosa ♀ from Paramithia, located at only 10 km from R. epirotica n. sp. type locality. Not to scale. Photo: C, K. G. Heller.

FIG. 3. — Titillators of Roeseliana epirotica n. sp. ♂: A, dorsal view;B, side view on the right. Not to scale.

FIG. 4. — Comparison of the titillators of the two geographically close species: A, Roeseliana epirotica n. sp. ♂; B, Roeseliana ambitiosa (Uvarov, 1924) ♂.

FIG. 5. — Roeseliana epirotica n.sp.♀,holotype,lateral view.Body length 24.5 mm.

FIG. 6. — Roeseliana epirotica n.sp.♂, allotype,lateral view.Body length 19.5 mm.

FIG. 7. — Roeseliana epirotica n. sp. ♀ in natura.

FIG. 8. — Locality of Mazarakia, Epirus, Greece.