Amorphoscelis pathomwattananuraki Unnahachote, 2025

Unnahachote, T., 2025, REVIEW OF THE GENUS AMORPHOSCELIS STÅL, 1871 (MANTODEA: AMORPHOSCELIDAE) FROM THAILAND WITH DESCRIPTION OF A NEW SPECIES, Far Eastern Entomologist 518, pp. 14-21 : 16-19

Amorphoscelis pathomwattananuraki Unnahachote , sp. n.

https://zoobank.org/NomenclaturalActs/ 2A712881-4462-413D-97F1-5C53309D037B

Figs 1 A-1F, 2A, 2D, 3A-3C

TYPE MATERIAL. Holotype – ♂ (THNHM-I-00029851, THNHM), Thailand: Yala Prov., Betong Dist. , 5˚53ˊ07.5˝ N, 101˚01ˊ 17.6˝ E, h= 825 m, 6.V 2024, Suradet Sae-Liang leg. (deposited in THNHM).

DESCRIPTION. Male. Head. Large, wider than the pronotum; compound eyes rounded and protuberant, ocelli large, with lateral ocelli oval-shaped and larger than the medial ocellus; lower frons narrow, wider than long, ventral margin widely concave, dorsal margin more or less truncated. Juxtaocular bulges distinctly protruded with rounded tips. Antennae filiform and very long.

Pronotum. Short, distinctly longer than wide; lateral pronotal expansion rounded; metazona longer than prozona, with a nearly smooth dorsal surface except for slight bumpiness at the posterior part of the prozona and metazona, distinct metazonal medial keel, and slightly curved lateral margins.

Prothoracic leg. Forefemora robust and pilose, with one short discoidal spine; tibiae short and slightly curved, lacking AvS or PvS; tarsi much longer than tibiae. The first segment of the metatarsi is much longer than the total length of the other segments.

Mesothoracic and metathoracic legs. Robust, with setae, the first segment of the metatarsi is much longer than the total length of the other segments.

Wings. Forewings nearly hyaline, long, extending beyond the tip of the abdomen; narrow, mostly hyaline costal area, only semi-opaque at the distal part with many more or less simple veins; external margin of the costal area with some short setae. Forewings have a distinctly long patch and a short patch at the distal part of the discoidal area ( Fig. 2A ), with the anal area hyaline. Hindwings mostly hyaline, with a semi-opaque anterior distal margin.

Abdomen. Slender, subgenital plate trapezoidal, deeply notched, with robust styli. The last segment of the cerci is elongated, flat, more or less parallel, with a rounded tip ( Fig. 1F ).

Male Genitalia. Well-sclerotized. Left phallomere: paa curved upward, covered with some setae; afa strongly sclerotized, short, rounded, covered with small tubercles. Ventral phallomere: sdpm large, pointed at the end, turning to the right; bl with a small pointed lobe. Right phallomere: pva strongly sclerotized, elongated, with a more or less pointed end and a distinct medial bulge; pia strongly sclerotized with a blunt end. ( Fig. 3A, 3B ).

Coloration. Generally greenish brown with spots. Head and pronotum have darken longitudinal bands at the margins and a tawny band in the middle ( Fig. 2D ). Antennae are entirely black on proximal part (approximately first 13 segments), with the rest having a light color at the proximal half and alternating black towards the end. Lower frons is tawny. Forecoxae are tawny, and the fore femora and foretibiae are the same color as the coxae, with dark brownish areas near the DS and on the femoral brush area; foretibiae have two small dark brown spots internally and are black at the tip. Mid and hind femora are greenish brown, with the middle and hind tibiae and all tarsi the same color as the femora but with some transverse dark brown bands. Forewings have a distinctly long brownish patch and a short patch at the distal part of the discoidal area, with the anal area hyaline. Hindwings are mostly hyaline, yellowish iridescent, with a semi-opaque anterior distal margin ( Fig. 2A ). The ventral surface of the abdomen is greenish brown. Cerci are brownish, with each segment dark-colored at the distal part. Genitalia are strongly infuscate.

Female. Unknown.

MEASUREMENTS (in mm). Body length: 19.5; head length: 1.55; head width: 3.62; pronotum length: 2.1; pronotum width: 1.73; forecoxa length: 2.7; forefemur length: 3.39; middle femur length: 4.2; hind femur length: 4.5; forewing length: 14.3; forewing width: 3.0 hindwing length: 13.3; cerci length: 2.87; cerci width: 0.72.

COMPARISON. New species is similar to A. sulawesiana from Sulawesi, Indonesia ( Figs 2B, E , 4 , 5 ). However, it can be easily distinguished from the latter species by a combination of the following characteristics: 1) coloration of the head (darkened areas extending from lateral margins to the lateral ocelli vs. darkened areas restricted to juxtaocular bulges in A. sulawesiana ); 2) compound eye shape from dorsal view (rounded vs. more or less angulated at lateral margin); 3) color pattern of the forewing; 4) costal margin of the forewing (mostly hyaline except the distal part vs. entirely opaque); 5) length of the last segment of the cerci (noticeably longer in the new species); 6) medial notch between the styli (deeply notched vs. slightly concave to nearly truncate); 7) median secondary distal process (sdpm more expanded at the posterior margin before the pointed tip vs. sdpm sharply curved, fang-like shape); 8) basal lobe (more or less pointed vs. rounded).

REMARKS. A new species represents the first occurrence of the philippina species group of the genus Amorphoscelis on the Asian mainland.

ETYMOLOGY. The species is named after a Thai entomologist, Wuttipon Pathomwattananurak, who has consistently been a valuable collaborator and has provided assistance during our entomological surveys.

Figures

Fig 1. Amorphoscelis pathomwattananuraki sp. n., holotype, male. A – habitus, dorsal view; B – head, dorsal view; C – head, frontal view; D – prothorax, dorsal view; E – foreleg, internal view; F – apical three segments of cerci, lateral view.

Fig 2. Forewings, head and prothorax of Amorphoscelis spp. A, D – A. pathomwattananuraki sp. n.; B, E – A. sulawesiana; C, F – A. singaporana.

Fig 3. Male genitalia and subgenital plate of Thai Amorphoscelis spp. A-C – A. pathomwattananuraki sp. n.; D, E – A. singaporana.

Fig 4. Amorphoscelis sulawesiana, holotype (NHMUK 010729358). A – habitus, dorsal view and label; B – anterior part of body, lateral view; C – same, dorsal view.

Fig 5. Amorphoscelis sulawesiana, paratype (NHMUK 016033080), male. A – genitalia; B – subgenital plate; C – cerci; D – whole preparation under cover slide.