Dellia albida, Yong, 2018

Yong, Sheyla, 2018, Revision of the genus Dellia Stål, 1878 (Orthoptera: Acrididae). Part 1. Two redescriptions and seven new species from Cuba, Ecologica Montenegrina 16, pp. 58-107 : 71-74

Dellia albida new species

Figs. 7–8 , 16–24 , 25a , 26a . Table II

Types. Cuba : Santiago de Cuba Province: Guamá Municipality: Río Nima-Nima: Pozas de Juan González (19°58'36"N - 75°58'59"W, 207 m a.s.l.); nocturnal search, on the vegetation; 21/June/2017; S. Yong, R. Teruel, A. A. Méndez.; one adult ♂ holotype and one juvenile ♀ paratype ( SY, in ethanol 80%) .

Diagnosis (based on a single male). Size small for the genus (15 mm). 1) Coloration predominantly green, without lateral stripes, dorsum bright white, head white, pronotum with anterior margin dark blue, epimera I– II without conspicuous spots, abdominal tergites dorsally and laterally bright white, with posterior margin dark blue, sternites green, hind femur green with small dark spots along transversal ridges, hind knees subtly infuscate medially with bluish gray. 2) Tegmina short and spatulate, reaching posterior margin of abdominal segment I. 3) Supra-anal plate medium-sized, paraboloid, longer than wide and sparsely setose; anterior margin almost straight and medially moderately lobed, lateral margins almost straight and strongly convergent backwards, gradually fusing with the posterior margin which is narrowly paraboloid; median sulcus complete, moderately deep and wide, flanked by a pair of low, coarse, medially divergent ridges. 4) Furcula short and subtriangular, feebly sclerotized, with the apex of the lobes curved inwards.

Etymology. The specific epithet is a Latin adjective that literally means "white" and refers to the striking and unusual color pattern of this species.

Description (adult male holotype). Size small for the genus (total length 14.8 mm). Coloration. Head bright white, except as follows: maxillae and maxillary palps pale green; antennae blackish with pale brownish tips, scapus and pedicel pale green, basal segments of flagellum pale orange; eyes light pink to violaceous, with six thin, parallel, vertical, conspicuously darker stripes. Pronotum basically vivid green, dorsally bright white with anterior margin dark blue, anterior and posterior corners of pronotum with a conspicuous bright white spot, lateral margins subtly infuscate. Metanotum bright white, with posterior margin blue. Epimera I and II vivid green, immaculate. Tegmina bright white immaculate. Fore and mid legs of same color: coxa, trochanter and femur vivid green, tibia pale green with a large median pale red spot, tarsomeres pale greenish with irregular infuscation; hind legs with coxa and trochanter vivid green, femur vivid green with small dark gray spots along transversal ridges, hind knees only subtly infuscate medially with bluish gray, tibia vivid blue, apically darker and with basal portion pale green, spines bluish with darker tips, tarsomeres pale bluish to greenish. Abdomen: tergites dorsally and laterally bright white, laterally vivid yellow, posterior margin of each tergite dark blue, lateral margins yellow, immaculate; sternites vivid green, immaculate. See figure 7 and table II.

Head (figs. 16–18). Moderately large, wider than long (ratio = 1.3). Tegument shiny, but sparsely and coarsely punctate, with thin and small scattered setae. Vertex moderately convex in lateral view, subtriangular in dorsal view; fastigium prominent, broad in dorsal view, semicircular in lateral view and strongly compressed in frontal view. Eyes very large, rounded and prominent; ocelli minute. Costa frontalis very well marked and horseshoe-shaped, i.e., upper portion wider and lower portion narrower. Genae basically straight in frontal view. Frons moderately and sparsely punctate. Antennae standard for Acrididae in size and shape, with 19/19 flagellomeres; scapus subcylindrical, wider than long (ratio = 1.7), oval in cross-section, essentially glabrous; pedicel clearly of more than half the length of scapus.

Thorax (figs. 19–20). Tegument shiny, but sparsely and coarsely punctate and with thin, small setae scattered all over. Pronotum subtrapezoidal in dorsal view, wider than long (ratio = 1.2) and slightly tapering anteriorly, anterior and posterior margins biconvex and shallowly incised medially, lateral margins shallowly sinuous; median keel weak, lateral keels coarsely crenulate and deeply incised by the three transverse grooves. Metanotum wider than long (ratio = 3.0) and shorter than abdominal segment I (ratio = 0.6), subrectangular in dorsal view with tegument coarsely punctate and shiny. Tegmina short (reaching posterior margin of abdominal segment I), narrow and spatulate, i.e., costal margin convex, anal margin almost straight and tip convex.

Legs (fig. 7). Covered all over by thin setae. Profemur slender, cylindrical and unarmed; protibia shorter than profemur (ratio = 0.9), very slender and straight, ventral surface with 4:3 / 3:4 subapical spines and two small apical spurs. Mid legs very similar to forelegs, but mesotibia with 3:5 / 6:3 subapical spines. Metafemur robust, larger than metatibia (ratio = 1.2), oval in cross-section; metatibia with 6:8 / 7:6 subapical spines and five inward-curved apical spurs: two small-sized laterodorsals, two medium-sized laterals, and one large ventral.

Abdomen. Large and slender (conspicuously narrower than pronotum), subcylindrical and evenly tapering posteriorly. Tegument shiny but feebly punctate, scattered with small setae and abdominal segments with median carina very well marked. Tympanic organ large, oval, and located laterally on segment I. Furcula normally sclerotized, short, curved inwards and with rounded tip. Supra-anal plate (fig. 21) medium-sized, paraboloid, longer than wide (ratio = 1.4) and sparsely setose; anterior margin almost straight and medially moderately lobed, lateral margins almost straight and strongly convergent backwards, gradually fusing with the posterior margin which is narrowly paraboloid; median sulcus complete, moderately deep and wide, flanked by a pair of low, coarse, medially divergent ridges. Cerci very short, conical and densely covered by thin setae, reaching the posterior margin of the Supra-anal plate and not surpassing apex of abdomen. Subgenital plate (fig. 23) suboval, as wide as long (ratio = 1.0) with thin setae scattered all over; anterior, lateral and posterior margins shallowly convex. See figures 7, 21–23 and table II.

Female. Adult unknown, only an early-instar juvenile available (fig. 8).

Variation. The small juvenile female paratype has a strikingly different coloration (fig. 8): almost the entire body and appendages light gray with a dense pattern of small dark grey spots, except for the antennae (annulated all along in dark grey and pale green), sternites (pale green) and hind leg femur and tibia (the former pale green with blackish spots on outer surface mostly over transverse ridges, the latter pale gray, basally blackish and with ventral half conspicuously infuscate). This specimen also has very short tegmina that barely reach the posterior margin of mesonotum, a common eval variation in Acrididae .

Comparisons. This species is most closely related to D. siboney n. sp., sharing color pattern and morphological features such as the coloration of pronotum, transverse ridges of the hind femur, abdominal tergites and general shape of the body. Nevertheless, D. albida n. sp. can be easily distinguished from the latter by the following characters:

1. Coloration of body. D. albida n. sp.: predominantly vivid green, with head and dorsum of thorax bright white, anterior margin of pronotum concolor. D. siboney n. sp.: predominantly reddish, including head and dorsum of thorax, anterior margin of pronotum sharply outlined with bright white. See figs. 7, 14.

2. Size of eyes. D. albida n. sp.: in dorsal view, larger and bulkier with respect to the head. D. siboney n. sp.: in dorsal view, smaller and less bulky with respect to the head. See fig. 16.

3. Shape of thorax. D. albida n. sp.: trapezoidal in dorsal view, with sides markedly divergent backwards. D. siboney n. sp.: subrectangular in dorsal view, with sides only slightly divergent backwards. See fig. 19.

4. Furcula. D. albida n. sp.: short, falcate. D. siboney n. sp.: very short, straight. See fig. 21.

5. Supra-anal plate. D. albida n. sp.: longer than wide, paraboloid. D. siboney n. sp.: wider than long, subpentagonal. See fig. 21.

6. Subgenital plate. D. albida n. sp.: longer than wide, suboval. D. siboney n. sp.: wider than long, paraboloid. See fig. 21.

Distribution (fig. 24). This species is known only from the type locality, on the southern slope of the eastern edge of the Cordillera del Turquino. This chain represents the main western subdivision of the Sierra Maestra Range.

Ecological notes. The two available specimens were found during a nocturnal search with standard whiteLED headlamps (about 22:00 h Eastern Daylight Time), sleeping on twigs of the thorny bush Acacia farnesiana (L.) Willd., 1806 ( Fabaceae ). Both specimens were located on separate plants at different heights above the ground (male 2.2 m, juvenile 1.5 m), just facing each other at opposite sides of a trail.

The collecting site is the transitional zone between subcoastal semicaducifolious forest and secondary thorny scrub on volcanic sandy soil, on a steep south-facing slope of a montane ravine (fig. 26a), at a low altitude of 210 m a.s.l.

Figures

Fig. 7. Adult male holotype of Dellia albida n. sp., full-body views: a) dorsal; b) lateral; c) ventral. Scale bar in millimeters.

Fig. 8. Juvenile female paratype of Dellia albida n. sp., full-body views: a) dorsal; b) lateral; c) ventral. Scale bar in millimeters. See strikingly different coloration compared to adult.

Fig. 16. Dorsal close-up of head and anterior margin of pronotum of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 17. Lateral close-up of head and anterior margin of pronotum of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 18. Frontal close-up of head of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 19. Dorsal close-up of thorax and abdominal segment I of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 20. Lateral close-up of thorax and abdominal segment I of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 21. Dorsal close-up of abdominal apex of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 22. Lateral close-up of abdominal apex of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 23. Ventral close-up of abdominal apex of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision.

Fig. 24. Geographical distribution of all Cuban Dellia recognized in the present revision. Note three nearby localities for D. atrostriata n. sp. and precise occurrence still wanting for D. insulana. The upper left inset (frame equals to 150 x 75 km) depicts the single precise locality known for D. multicolor stat. resurr. (red symbol), superimposed to all sites visited by Saussure in 1855 (yellow symbols), from left to right: Havana, Guanabacoa, Santa María del Rosario, Matanzas and Limonar.

Fig. 25. Live habitus of: a) Dellia albida n. sp., adult male holotype, in captivity; b–c) Dellia atrostriata n. sp., adult male from El Cojo, in nature; d) Dellia brauni n. sp., adult male holotype, in nature; e–f) Dellia multicolor stat. resurr., adult male topotype, in nature; g–i) Dellia megalapida n. sp., adult male holotype (g), adult male and adult female paratypes while mating (h), subadult female paratype (i), all in nature; j–k) Dellia melici n. sp., adult female holotype, in nature; l) Dellia zephyra n. sp., adult female holotype, in nature. Photos courtesy Rayner Núñez (b, c), Rubén Marrero (d), and Tomás M. Rodríguez (j, k, l).

Fig. 26. Habitat at the exact collecting site of: a) Dellia albida n. sp; b) Dellia atrostriata n. sp.; c) Dellia brauni n. sp.; d) Dellia megalapida n. sp., with the author and her collaborator Rolando Teruel while photographing some of the type specimens; e) Dellia melici n. sp.; f) Dellia multicolor stat. resurr.; g) Dellia siboney n. sp.; h) Dellia zephyra n. sp., note the vegetated pits (micro-dolines or large skylights) all along Las Perlas cave, the holotype was found in the dark passage connecting two of these pits. Photos courtesy Rolando Teruel (b, f, h), Tomás M. Rodríguez (c, e), and Luis A. Casanella (d).