Varitrella (Cantotrella) mindanao Gorochov, 2025

Gorochov, A. V., 2025, Taxonomy of Podoscirtinae (Orthoptera: Gryllidae). Part 17: some Madagascan genera and Varitrella, Russian Entomological Journal 34 (1), pp. 19-36 : 27-29

Varitrella (Cantotrella) mindanao Gorochov , sp.n.

Figs 36–42 , 47–53 .

MATERIAL EXAMINED. Holotype ♂, Philippines, Mindanao I., ~ 30 km W of Dabaw City, environs of Agco Lake on Apo Mt (7º01′03′′ N, 125º13′ 23′′ E), 1100–1300 m, forest, at light, 26.I–2.II.2024, A. Gorochov, M. Omelko, I. Naumenko ( ZIN) . Paratypes: 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀, same data as for holotype ( ZIN) ; 4 ♂♂, same island, ~ 150 km NNW of Dabaw City, environs of Dahilayan Adventure Park (8º11′38′′ N, 124º51′39′′ E), 1000–1500 m, forest, on leaves of bushes at night, 2–9.II.2024, A. Gorochov, M. Omelko, I. Naumenko ( ZIN) .

DESCRIPTION. Male (holotype). General appearance similar to that of V. (C.) palawanensis and V. (C.)? fuscoirrorata but with some characteristic features. Coloration light grey with following marks: dark grey fore part of epicranium under rostral apex and under antennal cavities, rather large median spot on posterior part of head dorsum ( Fig. 47 ), median longitudinal band on pronotal disc (this band narrower in middle part and wider in anterior and posterior parts), upper half of each pronotal lobe, numerous marks on tegmina (but some of them, located near Sc and Cu, very dark; Fig. 48 ) as well as moderately numerous small and very small spots on other parts of body; yellowish/whitish ocelli and some marks on tegmina; greyish and semitransparent majority of tegminal membranes; numerous grey but poorly distinct oblique lines on outer side of hind femur; blackish most part of anal plate ( Fig. 49 ). Head and pronotum rather narrow and long, with almost angular (in profile) head rostrum (apex of this rostrum almost twice as narrow as scape), small lateral ocelli, very small median ocellus (it almost obliterated and located at base of small shallow rostral concavity which similar to nearest parts of rostrum in coloration; Fig. 47 ), not very large eyes, weakly transverse pronotal disc (clearly narrowing to head) and moderately low lateral lobes; tegmina rather narrow and long (distinctly protruding beyond apices of hind femora), with venation as in Fig. 48 ; hind wings significantly protruding beyond tegminal apices; anal plate roundly lobe-like, with rather small and transverse membranous (lighter) median area on dorsal surface near its base, and with not deep dorsal median concavity near its apex ( Fig. 49 ); genital plate as in Fig. 50 . Genitalia ( Figs 36–38 ) also most similar to those of V. (C.) palawanensis , but: epiphallus with lateral lobes of its anterior (dorsal) fold more widely separated from each other, with dorsoapical processes significantly shorter and having obliquely truncate (not spine-like) apical parts, with apical lobes widely rounded in profile (vs these lobes more narrowly rounded, almost roundly angular), and with a pair of ventral lobes (articulated with ectoparameres) more distinct and located in distal (not in proximal) half of epiphallus; each ectoparamere much shorter, more strongly curved in profile and with distinctly convex dorsal edge of proximal portion; distal part of rachis clearly narrower, lacking a pair of distinct apical notches (this part with only a pair of shallow apical concavities), with narrower dorsomedian lobule having longitudinally lamellar and vertical but not high dorsal keel, and with a pair of lamellar ventroapical lobules slightly protruding beyond rest of rachis and directed partly downwards (vs distal part of rachis without dorsal keel but with wider and more widely spaced ventrolateral lobules which almost not protruding beyond rest of rachis as well as having small denticles and a pair of ventral hooks); rami comparatively large but rather short, with moderately thick posterior portions. Spermatophore partly missing, but its ampulla probably as in Fig. 42 .

Variations. Male paratypes distinguished from holotype by some differences in coloration (larger or less distinct darkened spots on head dorsum and pronotum, sometimes more uniform tegminal dorsal field) and small differences in male genitalia: often dorsoapical epiphallic processes somewhat longer (high- er), all apical lobules of rachis not protruding beyond epiphallic apices, and rami with thinner posterior portions (compare Figs 36–38 and 39–41 ); sometimes above-mentioned epiphallic processes almost triangular in shape, ectoparameres with almost straight dorsoproximal edges (see Fig. 38 and 41 ), and posterior part of longitudinal keel on dorsoapical rachial lobule wider (see Figs 36, 37 and 39, 40 ).

Female. Coloration and structure of body very similar to those of male holotype but distinguished by following characters: head ( Fig. 51 ) without dark spots near ocelli and with shorter (almost hidden under pronotum) dark median area on posterior part of dorsum; pronotum with lateral lobes somewhat lighter (upper halves of these lobes light grey with numerous and dense dark grey dots); dorsal tegminal field dark grey with some membranes grey, and with sparse and small yellowish/whitish marks ( Fig. 52 ); lateral tegminal field completely light grey but with a few dark dots in proximal portion of Sc-R area and with sparse dark dots between some Sc branches; tegminal venation with 12–13 longitudinal branches in dorsal field (these branches somewhat oblique, but two middle of them significantly S-shaped, and distal ones insignificantly S-shaped or almost straight), numerous irregular crossveins between them ( Fig. 52 ) and almost twice wider Sc-R area; anal plate smaller, roundly triangular and with light apex; genital plate as in Fig. 53 ; ovipositor approximately 1.2 times as short as hind femur, with drilling apical part which typical of this genus in structure (coloration of ovipositor light brown with dark both distal portion and longitudinal line on each outer side, but this distal portion with a pair of yellowish transverse outer bands near its middle).

Length in mm. Body: ♂ 17–19.5, ♀ 20; body with wings: ♂ 26–27.5, ♀ 29; pronotum: ♂ 3.1–3.3, ♀ 3.5; tegmina: ♂ 17– 18; ♀ 19.5; hind femora: ♂ 12–12.5, ♀ 13.5; ovipositor 11.5.

COMPARISON. The new species is similar to V. (C.) fuscoirrorata (Chopard, 1925) from Mindanao I., which was known for a long time after a single female, and especially to the males from this island recently attributed to the latter species [ Tan et al., 2023]. But the new species differs from the female holotype of V. (C.) fuscoirrorata in its clearly smaller body size: in the latter species, lengths of body with wings, of pronotum, of tegmina, of hind femora and of ovipositor are about 35, 4.5, 22.5, 15.5 and 13.5 mm, respectively; but in the new species female, these lengths are about 29, 3.5, 19.5, 13.5 and 11.5 mm, respectively (in all the males, these structures, except for ovipositor, are similar in length but distinctly shorter than in these females). Besides these females have some tegminal differences: the holotype of V. fuscoirrorata is with a yellowish longitudinal vein along the dorsal field lateral edge having a few small dark spots, and with three strongly S-shaped longitudinal veins (branches) in the middle part of this field; but the female of the new species is with a dark dorsal tegminal field along its lateral edge having only the proximal parts of some branches yellowish, and with two strongly S-shaped middle branches in this field ( Fig. 52 ). Moreover, the coloration of the ovipositor distal portion in these species is also somewhat different (in V. fuscoirrorata , it is distinctly more uniformly darkened). But the above-mentioned males [ Tan et al., 2023] may belong to V. (C.) mindanao sp.n., and small differences between them in shape of their tegminal mirror and of some other structures may be subspecies ones. From V. (C.) palawanensis , also more or less similar to the new species, V. (C.) mindanao sp.n. is distinguished by the male characters listed above (especially in shape of some structures of the male genitalia). From all other true and possible species of this genus, it is distinguished by more distinct differences in the male genitalia and/or by more contrastingly spotted body coloration.

ETYMOLOGY. This species is named after the Mindanao Island where it was collected.

Figures

Figs 30–46. Allotrella, Fryerius and Varitrella, male: 30–32 — A. analogica; 33–35 — F. (Brevitrella) intermedius sp.n.; 36–42 — V. (Cantotrella) mindanao sp.n., holotype (36–38) and paratypes (39–42); 43–46 — V. (C.) sumatra sp.n. Genitalia from above (30, 33, 36, 39, 43), from below (31, 34, 37, 40, 44) and from side (32, 35, 38, 41, 45); spermatophore (46) and its ampulla (42) from side. Рис. 30–46. Allotrella, Fryerius и Varitrella, самец: 30–32 — A. analogica; 33–35 — F. (Brevitrella) intermedius sp.n.; 36–42 — V. (Cantotrella) mindanao sp.n., голотип (36–38) и паратипы (39–42); 43–46 — V. (C.) sumatra sp.n. Гениталии сверху (30, 33, 36, 39, 43), сниЗу (31, 34, 37, 40, 44) и сбоку (32, 35, 38, 41, 45); сперматофор (46) и его ампула (42) сбоку.

Figs 47–57. Varitrella: 47–53 — V. (Cantotrella) mindanao sp.n., holotype (47–50) and paratype (51–53); 54–57 — V. (C.) sumatra sp.n. Head of male (47, 54) and of female (51) in front; male right tegmen (48); dorsal field of female (52) and male (55) right tegmen; male anal plate from above/behind (49, 56); genital plate of male (50, 57) and of female (53) from below. Рис. 47–57. Varitrella: 47–53 — V. (Cantotrella) mindanao sp.n., голотип (47–50) и паратип (51–53); 54–57 — V. (C.) sumatra sp.n. Голова самца (47, 54) и самки (51) спереди; правое надкрылье самца (48); дорсальнаЯ плоскость правого надкрыльЯ самки (52) и самца (55); анальнаЯ пластинка самца сверху/сЗади (49, 56); генитальнаЯ пластинка самца (50, 57) и самки (53) сниЗу.