Revision of the genus Amytta (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae, Meconematinae) and new species from East Africa
Author
Hemp, Claudia
Author
Heller, Klaus-Gerhard
text
Zootaxa
2017
4263
2
295
317
journal article
33086
10.11646/zootaxa.4263.2.5
0a5eaf77-8aa5-4527-9341-0afe6d0f62a3
1175-5326
573109
6B77DA06-E855-4909-9D52-5FFF6FCF0FEB
Amytta meruensis
n. sp.
Hemp
(
Figs. 1
C, 7 B, 8 D)
http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid:
Orthoptera
.speciesfile.org:TaxonName:496655
Holotype
male,
Tanzania
,
Mt Meru
,
Arusha
National Park, in herb layer of disturbed submontane forest,
1400 m
,
October 2006
; Depository
MfN
.
Paratypes
.
1 female
, same data as holotype; Depository
MfN
.
Further
paratype
material:
2 males
,
4 females
, same data as holotype.
Collection C.
Hemp.
Description. Male.
General body shape and colour
: Flightless, small, uniformly light yellowish-green. Behind eyes two lateral yellow lines, which continue along the pronotum, fading at posterior half. Eyes brown-reddish. Tegmina abbreviated, uniformly green.
Head and antennae
: Fastigium of vertex smooth conical, conus between eyes about half the size of first antennal segment. Antennae thin, longer than body length and whitish. Eyes circular, prominent. Cuticle of pronotum shiny with short scattered hairs. Elytra shortened, tectiform with reduced venation. Stridulatory area hidden under pronotum. Alae reduced to slender lobes covered by elytra.
Thorax and legs
: Fore and mid tibiae with open tympanum, with 4 outer and 4 inner spines, apical with a minute pair of spurs.
Abdomen:
Last abdominal tergite broad, medially broadly incurved with central gap or incision (
Fig. 1
C). Cercus with symmetrical basal blade-like projections forming hollow space. Apex of cerci curved inwardly and running out into longish slim apex (
Fig. 1
C). Subgenital plate elongate with long laterally compressed styli.
Female. As male. Ovipositor of female slender and smooth. Subgenital plate broader than long with posterior margin ending in rounded tip (
Fig. 8
D).
Measurements
males (n =3)
Body length 11.2–12.0 Median length of pronotum 4.3–4.5
Length of hind femur 7.5–7.6
Visible median length of tegmina 2.0
females (n = 5)
Body length 8.5–12.0 Median length of pronotum 3.5–3.7
Length of hind femur 7.5–8.5
Visible median length of tegmina 1.8–3.2
Length of ovipositor 8.2–9.5
Habitat
. Herb layer in submontane forest.
Distribution
.
Tanzania
, Mt
Meru
.
Diagnosis.
A. meruensis
n. sp.
has abbreviated tegmina and is thus easily distinguished from all fully alate
Amytta
species. Differentiated from male
A. olindo
by the different posterior margin of the last abdominal tergite. In male
A. olindo
no incision is present but the posterior margin is broadly incurved (
Fig. 1
B) while
A. meruensis
n. sp.
(
Fig. 1
C),
A. hanangensis
n. sp.
(
Fig. 1
D) and
A. abbreviata
(
Fig. 1
E) all have a gap or incision medially at the posterior margin of the last abdominal tergite. This incision is also not present in
A. kilimandjarica
and
A. merumontana
n. sp.
which also have completely different shaped male cerci.
A. hanangensis
n. sp.
,
A. abbreviata
and
A. taitensis
n. sp.
differ in the shape of the expanded male cerci from
A. meruensis
and the median incision in the posterior margin of the last abdominal tergite is differently shaped as well (compare
Fig. 1
C, D and E).
Etymology.
Named after Mt
Meru
where this species is endemic in submontane elevations.