Brachycaulopsis jovelensis, Fontana, Paolo, Mariño-Pérez, Ricardo & Woller, Derek A., 2013

Fontana, Paolo, Mariño-Pérez, Ricardo & Woller, Derek A., 2013, Studies in Mexican Tettigoniidae: A new genus of Copiphorini and the first description of male Conocephalus (Aphauropus) leptopterus Rehn and Hebard and the female of Insara acutitegmina Fontana, Buzzetti, Mariño-Pérez & García García, Zootaxa 3737 (4), pp. 429-453 : 437-442

Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.

http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid: Orthoptera .speciesfile.org:TaxonName:185222 Figs. 1 , 3 , 4 , 8–12 ; Table 1

Fontana, Buzzetti & Mariño-Pérez. 2008. Chapulines, Langostas, Grillos y Esperanzas de México. Guía fotográfica - Grasshoppers, Locusts, Crickets & Katydids of Mexico. Photographic guide. Pp. 66, fig. 63. (recorded only as Copiphorini )

Description (of male except where specified –main body measurements of type material are given in Table 1 )

General. Body slender, both sexes brachypterous, tegument moderately rugose ( Figures 8 A and 9A). Fastigium of vertex about two times as wide as scape at base, long, subconical; projection on ventral side of fastigium not reaching frons; frons weakly convex; genal carinae absent; eyes small. All legs long and slender; fore and middle legs completely without spines. Male cerci armed apically with two strongly incurved spines ( Figure 10 B & C); ovipositor as long as entire female body, almost straight, gradually tapering to acute apex ( Figures 8 A and 11A–C).

(1) Total length: from vertex to apex of hind femur.

(2) Tegmina length: exposed portion in lateral view (starting at costal vein in males).

Head. Fastigium subconical, about twice as wide as scape, forming a straight line with occiput ( Figure 9 B–D). Ventral side of fastigium of vertex with a small longitudinally-flattened subtriangular projection at base that does not connect with the frons; frons weakly convex ( Figure 9 B & C). Eyes small relative to head size, scarcely protruding ( Figure 9 A–D). Tegument of head smooth in front and on cheeks, weakly rugose on occiput and fastigium of vertex. Frons narrowly triangular; mandibles asymmetrical, right mandible smaller.

Thorax. Dorsal surface of pronotum rugose and flat, anterior margin straight, posterior margin weakly convex ( Figure 9 D) (almost straight in female ( Figure 8 B)); transversal section of pronotum subtrapezoidal; lateral carinae absent, but lateral sides of pronotal disk are marked on each side by a thin white band running parallel with an inner reddish-brown line. Lateral lobes with posterior angle rounded; humeral sinus not deep. Lower margin of lateral lobes almost straight, gently sinuose with anterior half feebly concave and posterior convex. Sulcus obvious, mostly linear, and located along the posterior edge of the first third of the pronotum. Thoracic auditory spiracle large, elliptical, and completely hidden under lateral lobe of pronotum. Prosternum armed with two thin, conical, widely-separated spines; meso- and metasternum with lateral lobes of basisterna subtriangular.

Wings. In both sexes, tegmina reduced, surpassing the middle of hind femora in males and, in the female, ending anteriorly to it. Tegmina subtriangular, ending with acutely-rounded apex. Anterior and posterior margins convex ( Figures 8 A and 9A). Male tegmina with basal portion of costal vein thickened and whitish with traces of reddish-brownish on inner margin continuing the pronotal disk’s lateral band and forming shapes akin to rounded brackets: “()” ( Figure 9 D). Stridulatory apparatus of male well-developed, almost straight: stridulatory area of left wing scarcely thickened ( Figure 9 E); stridulatory file short and almost straight with a maximum width of 100 µm, and consisting of 51 thin and narrow teeth ( Figures 9 G and 12A & B). Mirror of right tegmina suboval ( Figures 9 F and 13A & B) and scraper comprised of 36 thin and narrow teeth that are gently arched. Hind wings vestigial, unfolded in situ; about 4/5 of tegmina.

Legs. All legs thin, fore coxae with elongated, forward-projecting spine located dorsally. Fore and mid femora and tibia completely lacking spines; hind femora armed apically on lower margin with one spine in both sexes on inner side and with 4 to 6 spines in males and 7 in females on external side; in both sexes, hind tibiae without any spines on ventral side, but with a few thin spines on both apical margins of dorsal side. Apex of fore and middle tibiae with only two movable spines. Apex of hind tibiae with 2 pairs of ventral and 1 pair of dorsal movable spines. Tympanum of fore tibia bilaterally closed, tympanal slit facing forward; tympanal area weakly swollen.

Abdomen and terminalia. Dorsal surface of abdominal tergites smooth, unmodified ( Figure 10 A & B). 10th tergite in male with widely rounded to obtusely angular concave posterior margin and two lateral triangular expansions. Supra-anal plate elongated, triangular. Male cercus with two strong spines at apex, both bent inwards at a right to acute angle; upper spine half as long as lower one; both spines flattened, subconical with acute dark apex ( Figure 10 B & C). Male subgenital plate with a pair of styli and concave, rounded posterior margin ( Figure 10 C). Female cercus subconical, slender and straight ( Figure 11 A & B). Ovipositor as long as female body, almost straight, slightly bent upwards, upper and lower margins almost parallel, and apex acutely-rounded ( Figures 8 A and 11A–C); ovipositor length = 18.76 mm and width = 1.12 mm. Ovipositor longer than hind femur (ratio ovipositor/ hind femur = 1.675).

Coloration. Live and dried, mounted specimens light green ( Figures 8 A and 9A). Apex of ovipositor brownish ( Figure 11 A).

Type locality. Mexico, Chiapas, 15 km NW of Comitan, near San Francisco, on Highway 190 Comitan-San Cristóbal de Las Casas. 16°22.437’ N; 92°13.769’ W. 1936 m.a.s.l. Grassland in a Pine Forest ( Figures 1 and 3 ).

Type material. Male holotype and three paratypes (two males and one female) from type locality. 7-XII-2011. Collected by Paolo Fontana, Ricardo Mariño-Pérez, Derek A. Woller, and Paola Tirello.

Other material examined. One male. Mexico, Chiapas, 15 km SE San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Highway 190 Comitán-San Cristóbal de Las Casas. 16°37’51’’ N; 92°31’59’’ W; 2325 m.a.s.l. 14-XII-2006. Collected by Paolo Fontana and Patricia Lucero García-García.

Type depository. Male holotype, and one male and one female of paratype series in UCFC. One male of paratype series in CPF.

Etymology. The specific epithet for this species, jovelensis , is derived from the Tzotzil name for the type locality: Jovel (pronounced ho-vell), meaning “the place in the clouds”, which is also known as San Cristóbal de las Casas, the official government name. Tzotzil is a Maya language that is spoken by the indigenous people of the region and is also one of the most wide-spread native languages in the state of Chiapas.

Ecology. Adults of the species have been found in dense grasses patches within pine forests.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Distribution map of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov. (red circle), Insara acutitegmina (yellow squares) and Conocephalus (Aphauropus) leptopterus (blue triangles).

FIGURE 3. Photograph of the type locality for Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov. in Chiapas, Mexico.

FIGURE 4. Field photographs of both sexes of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Male. B. Female. Both from 15 km SE San Cristobal de Las Casas.

FIGURE 8. Photographs of the female paratype of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Lateral view. B. Thoracic view.

FIGURE 9. Various photographs of male specimens of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Lateral view of the holotype. B. Facial view. C. Close-up of the face from a slight angle – circled region shows the space between the ventral projection of the fastigium and the frons. D. Thoracic view of the same. E. Dorsal view of the left tegmina of a paratype. F. Dorsal view of the right tegmina of the same. G. Close-up of the stridulatory file of the same.

FIGURE 10. Close-up photographs of the external genitalia of a male paratype of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Lateral view. B. Dorsal view. C. Ventral view.

FIGURE 11. Close-up photographs of the external genitalia of the female paratype of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Lateral view. B. Dorsal view. C. Ventral view.

FIGURE 12. SEM photographs of the ventral side of the left wing of a male specimen of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis sp. nov.: A. Entire stridulatory file displaying 51 teeth. B. Close-up of the file’s teeth.

Tables

TABLE 1. Main body measurements of the type material of Brachycaulopsis jovelensis. Measurements are given in mm.

	Fastigium of Vertex Length (1) Width	Total Length	Pronotum Length	Hind Femur Length	Tegmina Length (2)
Holotype ♂	1.68 1.26	19.88	3.64	9.94	9.24
Paratype ♂	1.68 1.12	20.02	3.92	9.94	10.50
Paratype ♂	1.54 1.12	18.90	3.50	9.10	9.52
Paratype ♀	1.82 1.54	23.80	4.62	11.2	8.26