Podacanthophorus alas Naskrecki, sp. n.
Creators: name: Naskrecki, Piotr
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2000
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Orthoptera
Tettigoniidae
Podacanthophorus
Podacanthophorus alas

description: <i>Podacanthophorus alas</i> Naskrecki, sp. n. Figs. 34 A-C, 35A-C, 35K, 51C, 58G, Map 18 Type locality: Costa Rica, Heredia Prov., La Selva Biological Station; type depository: Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia – holotype male <i>Diagnostic description.—</i> The smallest species of the genus; general characteristics as described above; wings in both sexes hardly reaching apices of hind femora or slightly surpassing them (Fig. 34 A). Fastigium of vertex 2.5-3 times as long as eye diameter, narrowly rounded apically, with distinct dorsal furrow dorsally; ventral keel of fastigium somewhat undulant (Figs. 35 A-C). Male stridulatory file weakly curved, 0.9 mm long, 89 μm wide, with 284 closely spaced and relatively very wide teeth (Fig. 51 C); stridulatory area on male without secondary venation; mirror square; secondary veinlet next to AA1 present, divergent from AA 1 . Ventral anterior spines of hind femora as long as width of hind femur below knee (Fig. 35 K). Tenth tergite of male with two somewhat divergent, wide lobes; female 10th tergite with lobes much narrower, pointed; male cercus straight, basal internal spine nearly straight, distinctly constricted apically (Fig. 34 B); female cercus simple, elongately conical, somewhat curved. Male titillators needle-like, sinusoidal (Fig. 34 C). Ovipositor short, sickle-shaped, about as long as half of hind femur (ratio ovipositor/hind femur 0.50-0.60) (Fig. 34 A). <i>Coloration</i>.— General coloration light green; face creamy white; fastigium reddish-brown; clypeus and mandibles dark purple; metazona of pronotum in male with large, brown, usually heart-shaped spot; venation of tegmina and posterior edge of tegmina contrastingly yellow. <i>Measurements</i>.— Table 27. <i>Bioacoustics.—</i> The call of <i>P. alas</i> is low Q and low duty. Most of the energy is probably allocated in the ultrasonic frequencies, which unfortunately I was unable to record. The audible portion of the call consists of irregularly produced, paired lisps, with each lisp lasting 8.2- 14.5 ms (n=20) at 28°C (Fig. 58 G). The interval between the lisps ranged from 168 to 763 ms. The audible portion of the call does not have a clearly defined frequency peak, although frequencies between 9-12 kHz seem to have more energy. <i>Distribution</i>.— This new species been collected so far only at La Selva Biological Station, Heredia Prov. (Map 18). (all measurements are lengths in mm: range, mean±SD) <i>Material examined.—</i> <b>COSTA RICA: Heredia Prov.</b>, Puerto Viejo, La Selva Biological Station, elev. 50 - 150 m, 10° 26' N, 84° 1' W, 1 October 1995 (coll. P. Naskrecki) - 1 nymph (ALAS); same locality, 4 October 1995 (coll. P. Naskrecki) - 1 female (allotype) (ANSP); same locality, 10 - 15 November 1995 (coll. P. Naskrecki) - 1 male (holotype) (ANSP); same locality, 7 - 10 December 1995 (coll. P. Naskrecki) - 1 male, 1 female (paratypes) (PN collection); same locality, 13 April - 10 May 1998 (coll. P. Naskrecki) - 1 female (paratype) (PN collection). <i>Etymology.—</i> This species is named after the project ALAS (Arthropoda of La Selva) – the first large scale inventory of the Arthropoda of the tropical rainforest.
description: Published as part of <i>Piotr Naskrecki, 2000, Katydids of Costa Rica / Vol. 1, Systematics and bioacoustics of the cone-head katydids (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Conocephalinae sensu lato)., Philadelphia, PA :The Orthopterists Society at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia,</i> on pages 127-128, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.270035