Taxonomic revision of the genus Xenogryllus Bolívar, 1890 (Orthoptera, Gryllidae, Eneopterinae, Xenogryllini)
Author
Jaiswara, Ranjana
Author
Dong, Jiajia
Author
Ma, Libin
Author
Yin, Haisheng
Author
Robillard, Tony
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-01-18
4545
3
301
338
journal article
27632
10.11646/zootaxa.4545.3.1
b4e5a26a-0e84-4210-b2f1-284545cc1b8a
1175-5326
2618876
A6A7B9CE-9905-4DA7-8011-747D4B9325F7
Xenogryllus mozambicus
Robillard
n. sp.
(
Figs 2
A–D, 3K–L, 4H, 5F, 7J–K, 8F, 9D, 11H–J, 12C, 15, 16)
Xenogryllus eniopteroides
(wrong spelling of
X. eneopteroides
)—Toms 1984: 309.
Type material.
Holotype
,
♂
,
Mozambique
:
Cabo Delgado
,
Pantanos
de Nhica
, zone herbacée à
l’Est
du camp [herbaceous area E of camp],
10°45’19,1"S
40°13’00"E
,
122 m
,
29.xi.2009
,
T. Robillard
, nuit, enregistrement appel [call recording MNHN-SO-2018-140] (TR475) (MNHN-EO-ENSIF1517)
.
Allotype
,
♀
,
Mozambique
:
Cabo Delgado
, mare
SE de Nhica
, bras mort
de la Rovuma
[pond
SE
Nhica
, dead arm of
Rovuma river
],
10°45’41,9"S
40°13’31,7"E
,
124 m
,
27.xi.2009
,
T. Robillard
, mort en élevage [dead in captivity] (MNHN-EO- ENSIF1539)
.
Paratypes
(
8♂
,
4♀
):
Mozambique
:
Cabo Delgado
, same information as
holotype
:
1♂
,
1♀
, morts en élevage [dead in captivity] (MNHN-EO-ENSIF1576-ENSIF1556).
Same
information as
allotype
:
2♂
, mort en élevage [dead in captivity] (MNHN-EO- ENSIF1557, ENSIF1508).
Mare
SE de Nhica
, bras mort
de la Rovuma
[pond
SE Nhica
, dead arm of Rovuma river],
10°45’41,9"S
40°13’31,7"E
,
124 m
, nuit, zone herbacée en bord de piste [herbaceous area near track]
T. Robillard
:
22.xi.2009
,
1♂
(MNHN-EO-ENSIF1554),
3♀
(MNHN-EO- ENSIF1502, ENSIF1503, ENSIF1505);
23.xi.2009
,
1♂
(TR208), enregistrement appel
Take
224 [call recording MNHN-SO-2018-133] (MNHN-EO-ENSIF3079);
1♂
(TR206), enregistrement appel
Take
222 [call recording MNHN-SO-2018-134], molecular sample
X7
-
XenMoz
(MNHN-EO-ENSIF1515).
Mare
SW de Nhica
, bras mort
de la Rovuma
[pond
SW Nhica
, dead arm of Rovuma river],
10°52’09,5"S
40°06’47,1"E
,
122 m
,
24.xi.2009
, nuit, zone herbacée en bord de piste [herbaceous area near track]
T. Robillard
:
1♂
(TR224), hautes herbes (h=1.3 m) [on high grass], enregistrement appel
Take
228 [call recording MNHN-SO-2018-135], molecular sample
X23
(MNHN-EO-ENSIF1559);
1♂
, mort en élevage (MNHN-EO-ENSIF1581)
.
Additional material examined.
Mozambique
:
Delagoa
[
Maputo
Bay],
xii.1898, 1
♂, identified
Phormincter
species nova by
A. Finot
(MNHN).
South Africa
:
Zululand
,
Mtunzini
,
8.i.1952
,
R. Toms
,
1♂
, R146, identified
Xenogryllus eneopteroides
by
B. C. Townsend
, 1984, B.M.1983-166 (
NHMUK 010926568
)
.
Malawi
:
Fish Eagle Bay
Lodge
, herbaceous area near
lake Malawi
(
Mal
7),
S13°02'21.1"
E34°19'34.8"
,
503 m
,
6.x.2018
, night,
2♂
, call recording,
1♀
,
T. Robillard
,
K. Salazar
&
R. Murphy
(
MNHN
)
.
Type
locality.
Mozambique
,
Cabo Delgado
,
Pantanos of Nhica
,
10°45’19,1"S
40°13’00"E
.
Distribution.
Mozambique
,
South Africa
,
Malawi
.
Etymology.
Species named after the
type
locality.
Diagnosis.
Species of average to large size, close to
X. eneopteroides
and
X. maniema
n. sp.
From
X
.
eneopteroides
, the new species differs by rather larger size, face more rounded, almost globular in lateral view, absence of T-shaped median band on pronotum (also absent in
X. maniema
), larger mirror, and slight differences in male genitalia. From
X. maniema
n. sp.
,
X. mozambicus
mostly differs by male genitalia with larger lophi (
Fig. 8F
) and presence of transverse carina on ventral face of lophi (also present in
X. eneopteroides
). As
X. maniema
and
X. eneopteroides
,
X. mozambicus
differs from
X. lamottei
n. sp.
and Asian species by strongly carinated lateral angles of pronotum.
Description.
Species of average size (
Fig. 2
A–D), coloration light brown little contrasted. Eyes little prominent laterally (
Fig. 3K
), higher than long, occupying almost half of head height in lateral view. Face globular in lateral view (
Fig. 3L
), with typical whitish mask underlined by a black line below eyes and on mandibles. Pronotum dorsal disc strongly carinated laterally, coloration light brown, with a median dark brown band, not extended laterally near anterior margin; lateral lobes almost homogeneously dark brown. First article of antennae dark brown.
FIGURE 15.
(A–D)
Xenogryllus mozambicus
n. sp.
: Savannah habitat in Mozambique (A), male (B) and female (C) in bushy vegetation at night; male (D) predated by
Reduviidae
sp.
Male.
FWs very wide, longer than abdomen; dark coloration anterior to 1A including angle of 1A (
Fig. 5F
). Stridulatory file with 505 teeth (n=1) on transverse part of 1A. FW venation as in
X. eneopteroides
,
mirror wider and apical field longer, forming a long triangle including 5–6 (n=8) cell alignments.
Male genitalia
(
Fig. 7
J–K): Similar to
X. eneopteroides
,
except longer pseudepiphallic lophi (
Fig 8F
); transverse carina on ventral face of lophi present but weak.
Female
(
Fig. 2
C–D) FW dorsal field elongate, with 8–9 longitudinal veins (m = 9, n = 6). Subgenital plate with a shallow apical indentation (
Fig. 9D
). Ovipositor short, about 0.6 times FIII length.
Female genitalia:
Copulatory papilla (
Fig. 11
H–J) as in
X. eneopteroides
,
conical and narrow, well-sclerotized except base and apex.
Life history traits.
X. mozambicus
lives in areas of wet savannah (
Fig. 15
) or on the edge ponds and lakes. Individuals of both sexes are found only at night in herbaceous vegetation, and males sing at night from the vegetation (
ca.
30–80 cm
high). Toms (1984) demonstrated that this species has directional calls and turs while calling, giving rise to changes in sound intensity.
Calling song
(
Figs 12C
,
16
). At 21.5 °C, males of
X. mozambicus
emit almost continuously long bouts of highly musical calling songs. After a warming phase, call bouts are made of successions of echemes of 23 ± 2 syllables, barely separated from each other (echeme duration = 3.13 ±
0.29 s
; echeme period 3.21 ±
0.30 s
, echeme duty cycle = 97.6 %), with a regular amplitude profile, except for the last syllable, which is more intense. Within echemes, syllables are initially organized in 4 ± 1 doublets, which are followed by a series of similar syllables. Syllables are very long (syllable duration = 126 ± 5 ms), with a relatively short syllable period of 137 ± 8 ms (syllable duty cycle = 92%). All syllables are characterized by a large amplitude modulation: in initial doublets within echemes, the first syllables are less intense than the second ones and they start with a lower amplitude than their end (initial amplitude <ending amplitude), contrary to the second syllables of the doublets (initial amplitude> ending amplitude); the rest of the syllables have a higher starting amplitude, except for the last syllable of each echeme, which has a higher ending amplitude. The frequency spectrum shows a pure-tone dominant frequency at 3.3 ± 0.01 kHz, followed by a rich harmonic content including three powerful harmonics at
ca.
6.6, 9.9, 13.2 kHz, especially visible in ending syllables.
FIGURE 16.
Calling song of
Xenogryllus mozambicus
n. sp.
: (A) oscillogram of 5 echemes; (B) detailed oscillogram (upper panel), amplitude envelope (middle panel) and sonogram (lower panel) of 1 echeme; (C) detailed oscillogram (upper panels) and sonograms (lower panels) of one the two initial syllables (left) and of the final syllable (right); (D) frequency spectrum.
Measurements.
See
Table 7
.
Taxonomic discussion.
The specimens observed by Toms (1984) and identified
Xenogryllus eniopteroides
(wrong spelling for
X. eneopteroides
) from Zululand (Mtunzini and Eastern Transvaal (Clanor)),
South Africa
, belong to
X. mozambicus
n. sp.
according to one male specimen observed from the series of Toms (NHMUK 010926568).