Ramandeun Murcia and Cadena-Castañeda, 2023

Murcia, Andres David & Cadena-Castañeda, Oscar J., 2023, The stick insects (Insecta: Phasmatodea) from the Cloud Forest of the Chicaque Natural Park, Colombia, Insecta Mundi 2023 (20), pp. 1-45 : 15

Ramandeun Murcia and Cadena-Castañeda , new genus

Description. Body large and thin; general coloration of the body yellow. Head longer than wide, wider towards the eyes and narrower at its posterior margin; vertex elevated and may have small tubercles or spines; eyes large and spherical; scape and pedicel unarmed, scape elongated 1.5 times longer than pedicel and ventrally compressed, antennae not exceeding the tergite III. Pronotum rectangular 1.5 times longer than wide; mesonotum elongated, seven times longer than pronotum; metanotum smooth, as long as half-length of mesonotum. All femora slightly trapezoidal with setouse edges and compressed basally. Abdomen smooth, longer than head and thorax combined, median segment indistinguishable from metanotum; all tergites longer than wide. Poculum as long as sternite VIII, slightly convex. Subgenital plate lanceolate, projects beyond the apex of the abdomen, three times the length of the anal segment. Cerci very small, dorsoventrally compressed, and slightly curved, hidden in dorsal view by the anal segment.

Type species. Ramandeun coronatum new species by original designation and monotypy.

Etymology. The name is the combination of the Latin words ramus (branch) and Andean (Andean). The name of this genus means “Andean branch”, adding the ending un. The gender of the name is being established as neuter.

Comparison. The new genus differs from other Diapheromerini such as the Andean genera Andeocalynda Henneman and Conle, 2020 and Clonistria Stål, 1875 in having an indistinguishable median segment in both sexes; absence of a preopercular organ in the sternite VII of females ( Fig. 16F ). Both sexes’ heads armed with small tubercles or spines; with large, spherical eyes, small and almost rounded in the genera mentioned above. Males also differ in having a poculum as long as the sternite VIII, is slightly convex and not bulging as in Andeocalynda . However, it shares with Andeocalynda the lanceolate subgenital plate projected beyond the last tergite. This character is helpful to differentiate from Paracalynda Zompro, 2001 easily, which has the subgenital plate short and does not project beyond the abdominal segment IX.

Figures

Figure 16. Ramandeun coronatum new genus and new species. (Female). A–B) Head and pronotum in lateral and dorsal views, respectively. C–E) Terminalia in lateral, dorsal, and ventral views, respectively. F) Sternum VII, the black arrow indicates the lack of preopercular organ.