Ovonotus abreuae, Naskrecki & Guta, 2019

Naskrecki, Piotr & Guta, Ricardo, 2019, Katydids (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) of Gorongosa National Park and Central Mozambique, Zootaxa 4682 (1), pp. 1-119 : 36-38

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4682.1.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:430B98EF-BFCB-4608-A562-DEFA9539C8B2

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5629491

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/1547146C-736C-4FB2-ABFE-2077969DF86B

taxon LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:act:1547146C-736C-4FB2-ABFE-2077969DF86B

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Ovonotus abreuae
status

sp. nov.

Ovonotus abreuae View in CoL sp. n.

http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid: Orthoptera .speciesfile.org:TaxonName:506825

( Figs. 3A View FIGURE 3 , 5A View FIGURE 5 , 14 View FIGURE 14 A–E, 15A–K, 49D–F)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:24604215-850E-4DD0-AFD6-71E4104B4443

Type locality. Mozambique: Sofala, GNP, Mt. Gorongosa , southern slope (-18.462417, 34.053139), 1236 m, 18– 20.vi.2012, coll. P. Naskrecki—male holotype ( MCZ) GoogleMaps

Differential diagnosis. Similar to O. incisus in its general appearance but different in the morphology of the male 10 th tergite, cerci, titillator, and subgenital plate ( Figs. 15 View FIGURE 15 A–I), the female 10 th tergite and subgenital plate ( Fig. 14C View FIGURE 14 ), and bioacoustic characteristics ( Figs. 49 View FIGURE 49 D–F).

General. General characteristics as described above.

Stridulatory file. Stridulatory file 2.8 mm long, 0.18 mm wide, with 83 teeth ( Fig. 15J View FIGURE 15 ).

Abdomen. Male 10th tergite with two broadly triangular posterior lobes separated by shallow widely triangular incision ( Fig. 15A View FIGURE 15 ); female 10th tergite with shallow widely triangular emargination. Cercus short, strongly flattened dorso-ventrally, less than twice as long as wide, straight when seen from side; with blunt inner tooth at base and small, blunt subapical tooth ( Figs. 15E, F View FIGURE 15 ). Phallus with well developed, strongly sclerotized, unpaired titillator; titillator with robust basal plate, thick stem that narrows towards apex, and apical part almost as wide as basal plate and shaped like robust trident when seen from above ( Fig. 15H View FIGURE 15 ); dorsal portion of apex flattened into sharp triangle ( Fig. 15G View FIGURE 15 ). Subgenital plate with posterior part strongly elongated, diverging into two narrow incurved lobes and with minute sharp protrusion between them ( Fig. 15B View FIGURE 15 ); dorsal part of subgenital plate with two small, vertical lobes at base of apical lobes ( Fig. 15I View FIGURE 15 ); styli minute and stub-like, about as long as wide. Female subgenital plate with posterior emargination narrower than posterior lateral lobes ( Fig. 14C View FIGURE 14 ).

Coloration. Coloration variable, light green to olive to brown, frequently with small dark dots on metazona of pronotum; occiput only slightly darker than rest of head; lateral lobes of pronotum frequently darker than dorsal part of pronotum, lateral carinae of pronotum marked with contrasting lines ( Fig. 14A View FIGURE 14 ); legs similar in coloration to rest of body, tarsi pale; ovipositor dark brown, its apex almost black ( Figs. 14D, E View FIGURE 14 ).

Bioacoustics. The call of O. abreuae consists of a long train of syllables, which are occasionally paired, produced at the rate of 10–12 syllables/sec (at 20°C); mean syllable duration is 0.02985 (SD=0.00344, n=62), with the frequency peak at 13.2–21.8 kHz ( Figs. 49 View FIGURE 49 D–F). The call, produced by males only at night, is audible to the human ear from about 1–2 meters.

Distribution and natural history. This new species is currently known only from Mt. Gorongosa and, like Gorongosa carri , is probably endemic to that area. It is also similarly highly threatened by habitat loss. A large section of the forested area at the elevation ca. 1200 m, where most specimens of this species had been collected, was deforested in 2013 and it is not clear if this katydid species is still present on the southern slopes of Mt. Gorongosa . Currently, its only known population survives within the remaining patches of the riverine forest along Rio Murombodzi.

O. abreuae is found in humid, shaded environments dominated by tall trees Newtonia buchananii (Baker) Gilb. & Boutique and with understory that includes extensive stands of Dracaena fragrans (L.) Ker-Gawl and D. mannii Baker. These insects are often found within the foliage of these plants although they can also be seen on lower, herbaceous plants on the forest floor. They feed on a variety of plant material, such as flowers and seeds, but are also opportunistically predaceous on small, slow moving insects. Several collected individuals of O. abreuae were parasitized by an unidentified nematode and one individual was a host to a parasitoid fly Glaurocara sp. ( Tachinidae ). Adults appear at the end of the rainy season in May and can be found until July, while nymphs can be seen throughout the year.

Etymology. This species is named in honor of Ms. Alcinda António de Abreu, former Minister of the Environment in Mozambique, whose support was instrumental in including Mt. Gorongosa into Gorongosa National Park.

Measurements (2 males, 2 females). body: male 25.5–28 (26.81.8), female 31–37 (344.2); pronotum: male 12– 13.5 (12.81.1), female 10.5–12 (11.31.1); tegmen: male 6; hind femur: male 15.5–17.5 (16.51.4), female 17.5–18 (17.8.4); ovipositor: 10–13 (11.52.1) mm.

Material examined (23 specimens). Mozambique: Sofala, Gorongosa , GNP, Murombodzi Waterfall, Mt. Gorongosa , elev. 842 m (-18.483361, 34.042944), 21.vii.2015, coll. P. Naskrecki—3 nymphs; Gorongosa , GNP, Mt. Gorongosa , southern slope, elev. 1236 m (-18.462417, 34.053139), 18–20.vi.2012, coll. P. Naskrecki— 3 females, 2 males, 14 nymphs (incl. holotype, 4 paratypes); same locality, 11.v.2013, coll. P. Naskrecki—1 nymph ( MCZ).

MCZ

Museum of Comparative Zoology

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Orthoptera

Family

Tettigoniidae

Genus

Ovonotus

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