Mutonemobius, Hegg, 2024

Hegg, Danilo, 2024, Small crickets of New Zealand (Orthoptera: Grylloidea: Trigonidiidae and Mogoplistidae), with the description of two new genera and species, European Journal of Taxonomy 955 (1), pp. 1-87 : 40-41

Genus Mutonemobius gen. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:2B391E11-9118-4190-98BF-162B69795392

Type species

Mutonemobius marmoratus gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology

From the Latin ‘ mūtus ’ (adj.), ‘mute’, ‘silent’; Mutonemobius means ‘silent Nemobius ’. Mutonemobius is male gender.

Diagnosis

Large-sized Nemobiinae , with body length between 7 and 9 mm. Forewings vestigial only, identical in both sexes, lacking stridulatory apparatus in males; hindwings and tympana absent. Head large and bulbous; eyes not bulging. Tibia III in both sexes with four subapical spurs on inner edge and three or four subapical spurs on outer edge. Length of outer ventral apical spur on Tibia III approx. 80% to 85% that of inner ventral apical spur. Outer apical spur on Tarsomere III-1 approx. 70% that of inner apical spur. Male genitalia as in Fig. 21 . Ovipositor smooth, slender, with lateral valves divaricating at apex.

Habitat and ecology

Nocturnal, Mutonemobius crickets live in leaf litter in forest habitat and in tall, damp grass, where they can locally reach very high population densities.

Figures

Fig. 21. Mutonemobius marmoratus gen. et sp. nov., ♂ genitalia. Araheke Stream, New Plymouth. A–B. Microscope images of pseudepiphallic sclerite sclerite (MPN OR0266). A. Dorsal view. B. Ventral view. C–E. Micro CT scans (MPN OR0318). C–D. Cross-section, dorsal view, Volume Blending. E. Lateral view, Maximum Intensity Projection (MIP). Scale bars = 250 μm.