Alloteratura quaternispina Shi, Di & Chang

Shi, Fu-Ming, Di, Juan-Xia & Chang, Yan-Lin, 2014, One new species of the genus Alloteratura Hebard, 1922 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Meconematinae) from Yunnan, China, Zootaxa 3846 (4), pp. 597-600 : 597-600

Alloteratura quaternispina Shi, Di & Chang , sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–2 )

Description. Male: Body small, baculiform, slender. Fastigium verticis conical, protruding forewards, apex bluntly rounded, with a dorsal longitudinal sulcus. Eyes globular. Apical segment of maxillary palpi shorter, about half of subapical segment, apex enlarged.

Pronotum moderately prolonged posteriorly, anterior margin slightly concave, posterior margin obtusely rounded, transverse sulci indistinct, metazona slightly flat; lateral lobe of pronotum without humeral sinus, posterior margin oblique. Procoxae unarmed, tibial tympana open on inner and outer sides. Femora of all legs without spines on ventral surface, apices of genicular lobes bluntly rounded, protibiae with 4 internal spines and 2 external spines on ventral surface; hind tibiae with 20–23 spines on internal and external sides on dorsal surface separately, a pair of distal spurs on dorsal and ventral surfaces separately. Thoracic auditory opening, comparatively small, oval.

Tegmina short, reaching or slightly surpassing apex of abdomen; most stridulatory area of tegmina covered by pronotum, apical angle acutangular; hind wings shorter than tegmina.

Tenth abdominal tergite rectangular, slightly wider than long, posterior margin slightly concave. The base of cercus broad, with a long dorsal branch on the base directed dorso-caudally, compressed, apex acute; with a spine-shaped process on basal ventral surface, apex subacute; dorso-inner margin in the middle with a finger-shaped branch; apical area of cercus thin, incurved with apex obtusely rounded, apical third with a triangular and lamellar branch on ventral surface. Epiphallus sclerotized, symmetrical, complicated and depressed, basal area broad, distal area narrow, apex rounded or slightly truncate, at centre with a small notch; dorsal margin of subapical area with a pair of short, stout spines directed outwards; and with a pair of long, spine-shaped processes near middle area of lateral sides directed outwards. Subgenital plate short and broad, apex rounded; styli on subapical area of subgenital plate, conical, apices subacute.

Coloration. Body green. Eyes yellowish brown. Disc of pronotum with a pair of longitudinal yellow stripes on lateral margins. Spines of hind tibia on dorsal surface yellowish brown. The cells of tegmina with indistinct brown spots. The processes of epiphallus with apices yellowish brown.

Female. Pronotum shorter than male. Tegmina not reaching or slightly surpassing posterior margin of tenth abdomen tergite. Tenth abdominal tergite split in the middle area of posterior margin. Epiproct small, tongue-shaped. Cerci thinner at base, middle area slightly stout, apex acute. Ovipositor comparatively stout at base, moderately curved upwards in apical half, dorsal valvulae almost as long as ventral ones, ventral margin smooth and dorsal margin with many small teeth. Subgenital plate broad, short, posterior margin rounded. Cerci brown.

Material examined. Holotype: male, Yunnan: Baoshan, Mangkuan, N25°17′, E98°48′, 1528 m, 23 August, 2013, collected by Jiao Jiao. Paratypes: 1 male and 1 female, Yunnan: Baoshan, Gaoligongshan, N24°49′, E98°46′, 2040 m, 20 August, 2013, collected by Jiao Jiao; 1 male, Yunnan: Baoshan, Gaoligongshan, 20 August, 2013, collected by Zhang Ying; 1 female, Yunnan: Baoshan, Gaoligongshan, 18 August, 2013, collected by Jiao Jiao; 1 female, Yunnan: Baoshan, Gaoligongshan, 20 August, 2013, collected by Zhang Ying; 1 male and 1 female, Yunnan: Baoshan, Gaoligongshan, 22 August, 2013, collected by Jiao Jiao; 1 male, Yunnan: Baoshan, Mangkuan, 27 August, 2013, collected by Jiao Jiao; 1 male, Yunnan: Yingjiang, Xima, N 24°41′, E 97°56′, 2100 m, 15 October, 2003, collected by Ou Xiao-Hong.

Measurements (mm). Body (from apex of fastigium verticis to posterior margin of tenth abdominal tergite): ♂7.3–8.0, ♀8.5–8.8; pronotum: ♂3.1–3.2, ♀2.5–2.6; tegmina: 6.2–7.5, ♀5.7–5.8; postfemora: ♂6.8–7.0, ♀7.0–7.2; ovipositor (from basal part of subgenital plate to apex of ovipositor): 5.6–5.8.

Etymology. The new species is named after epiphallus morphology, with 4 spine-shaped processes.

Remarks. The new species is allied to Alloteratura cervus Gorochov, 1998 , but it differs from the latter in: male cercus and epiphallus morphology.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Alloteratura quaternispina, sp. nov.: A. male, B. female.

FIGURE 2. Alloteratura quaternispina sp. nov.: A, D. pronotum in dorsal view; B. maxillary palpus; C, K. subgenital plate in ventral view; E. apical segment of maxillary palpus; F – H. apex of abdomen: F. lateral view; G. dorsal view; H. ventral view; I. apex of epiphallus in ventral view; J. ovipositor in lateral view; A – B, E – I, K. male; C – D, J. female.