Nesiophasma turbans, Gunther, 1935

Hennemann, Frank H., 2021, Stick insects of Sulawesi, Peleng and the Sula Islands, Indonesia- a review including checklists of species and descriptions of new taxa (Insecta: Phasmatodea), Zootaxa 5073 (1), pp. 1-189 : 120-123

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5073.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:AA3269D1-CA2F-4528-BC9D-3A4C75D05BD9
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10062252
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03DB87EE-FF86-9D2D-FF40-5A11FD4BF27D
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Nesiophasma turbans
status

Treatment

Nesiophasma turbans View in CoL (Brunner v. Wattenwyl, 1907)

( Figs. 44A View FIGURE 44 , 46B–D View FIGURE 46 )

Eucarcharus turbans Brunner View in CoL v. Wattenwyl, 1907: 186. HT, ♂: Minabassa, Staudinger, Phryganistria View in CoL ; Carcharus? turbans Br. View in CoL ; Sintipo; MNCN Cat. Tipos No 7635 [MNCN].

Günther, 1934b: 78.

Günther, 1935a: 18.

Nesiophasma turbans, Günther, 1935b: 139 View in CoL .

Günther, 1935a: 29.

Günther, 1938: 59 & 82.

Hennenmann, 1998: 125.

Otte & Brock, 2005: 227.

Further material: 1 ♂: Sulawesi [ IRSN] ; 1 ♂: Celebes, Eucarcharus turbans Br. [ SMTD] .

Differential diagnosis: Males, the only sex known, are very similar to N. giganteum n. sp. from Peleng but differ by the somewhat larger size, more slender and elongate body and legs as well as the differently shaped anal segment ( Fig. 46B View FIGURE 46 ) and vomer ( Fig. 46D View FIGURE 46 ).

Description: The following description is solely based on the holotype specimen in MNCN.

♂ ( Fig. 44A View FIGURE 44 ). Large (body length 153.0–157.0 mm), shape very slender for the genus. Entire body smooth and very slightly shiny. General colour dull greyish green with the head, prothorax, anterior and posterior portions of the meso- and metathorax and most of the abdomen greyish ochre (abdomen certainly discoloured due to preservation). Legs dull greyish green, the meso- and metafemora dull orange at the base and the apex of all femora and tibiae as well as of all tarsomeres black. Leg armature dark brown, tarsi sepia. Antennae dark reddish brown and becoming darker towards their base.

Head: Moderately globose, slightly longer than wide and broadest at the eyes, genae narrowing and vertex very gently rounded and smooth. Eyes dark reddish brown, very large, circular in outline and strongly projecting, their length contained about 1.7x in that of genae. Antennae long and filiform, reaching to abdominal segment III. Scapus compressed dorsoventrally, pedicellus cylindrical, III considerably shorter than pedicellus. Following antennomeres gradually increasing in the length, the terminal 20 or so antennomeres gradually decreasing in length.

Thorax: Pronotum somewhat shorter and much narrower than head, rectangular in outline, the transverse median sulcus moderately developed, almost straight and just not reaching lateral margins of segment. Mesothorax very slender and elongate, very slightly widened anteriorly and posteriorly, about 9.25x longer than pronotum and almost 29x longer than wide. Metanotum about 3/5 the length of mesothorax with anterior and posterior portion gently widened. Meso- and metasternum slightly tectinate longitudinally.

Abdomen: Abdomen including median segment about equal in length to head and complete thorax combined. Median segment with posterior margin wider than anterior margin, gently narrowed medially and about 2.3x longer than wide; just a little more than 1/6 the length of metanotum. Segments II–VII slightly decreasing in length, II about 2.8x longer than median segment and 7x longer than wide, VII about 3/5 the length of II and roughly 5x longer than wide. All slightly constricted medially. Sterna II–VII all very slightly tectinate longitudinally. Tergum VIII a little more than half the length of VII and gradually widened towards posterior, IX equal in length and gently narrowing towards posterior. Anal segment slightly tectinate longitudinally, ¾ the length of IX and roughly of uniform width, the posterior margin with a shallow, roundly triangular excavation ( Fig. 46B View FIGURE 46 ) and the outer corners bluntly rounded, swollen and minutely dentate ventro-interiorly ( Fig. 46D View FIGURE 46 ). Poculum small and moderately convex, roundly cup-shaped with a small and blunt backward pointing sub-basal projection ( Fig. 46C View FIGURE 46 ) and the posterior margin rounded; posterior half with a fine longitudinal median carina ( Fig. 46D View FIGURE 46 ). Vomer almost 2x longer than wide, the ventral surface with several, fine, slightly curved transverse impressions, the apical portion distinctly narrowed and terminating in a single, up-curving hook ( Fig. 46D View FIGURE 46 ). Cerci obtuse, round in cross-section, notably up-curving ( Fig. 46C View FIGURE 46 ) and somewhat projecting beyond posterior margin of anal segment.

Legs: All very long and slender, with all carinae minutely and densely dentate (less distinct on tibiae). Profemora longer than head, pro- and mesothorax combined, mesofemora slightly longer than mesothorax, metafemora reaching to abdominal segment VI and metatibiae projecting considerably over apex of abdomen. Medioventral carina of all femora faint and unarmed. Tarsi very elongate and slender (probasitarsus in particular), basitarsi 1.3x longer than remaining tarsomeres combined, meso- and metabasitarsi with a few minute teeth.

Comments: This species was originally described from a unique ♂ from Minahasa, North Sulawesi (Brun-ner v. Wattenwyl, 1907: 186). No subsequent author has since examined the specimen, why a re-description and illustration of the holotype appears warranted and is presented here. The ♂ in IRSN ( Fig. 44A View FIGURE 44 ) has the body more brownish than the holotype. The ♀♀ are unknown but the author has seen photographs of a specimen from Biak east of Luwuk. These show a gigantic insect that is considerably more elongate and slender than ♀♀ of either N. giganteum n. sp. or N. spinulosum (Brunner v. Wattenwyl, 1907) and in general appearance most closely resembles N. plateni ( Dohrn, 1910) . As a distinctive characteristic, the mesopleurae bear a longitudinal row of acute tubercles. The subgenital plate is very long, lanceolate and projects over the apex of the abdomen by more than the length of the three terminal abdominal segments. The legs are very slender and just minutely dentate. The colouration is mainly mid greyish brown with pale markings along the lateral body surfaces but the abdominal terga in particular and the legs bear pale annulations. Eggs unknown.

Distribution: North Sulawesi: Province Sulawesi Utara, Minahasa [MNCN]; Eastern Central Sulawesi, Su-lawesi Tengah, Biak nr. Luwuk [photographic record].