Ultragryllacris nigrifrontis Luo & Bian, 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Luo, Ting
name: Bian, Xun
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Orthoptera
Gryllacrididae
Ultragryllacris
Ultragryllacris nigrifrontis

description: Ultragryllacris nigrifrontis sp. nov.
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Figures 1–2
Type material. Holotype: male, Banlao, Lincang, Yunnan, China, August 19, 2023, coll. by Siyu Pang and Ting Luo. Paratype: 1 female, same data as holotype.
Diagnosis. The new species is very similar to Ultragryllacris chandra Dawwrueng, Gorochov & Suwannapoom, 2023 in facial color but differs by the coloration of pronotum (with black margins and a pair of black spots on anterior and posterior margins), the shape of male ninth abdominal tergite (apical area obvious narrower than basal area) and the female subgenital plate (basal part having a long sclerotised transverse bulge). While in Ultragryllacris chandra, pronotum is light orange-brown with a few indistinct reddish-brown areas along anterior and posterior margins; apical area of the process of male ninth abdominal tergite is slightly narrower than basal area; female subgenital plate bears short sclerotised transverse bulge.
Description. Male. Body large, robust.
Head. Face with scattered dots (Fig. 1A). Fastigium verticis approx. 1.7 times as broad as scape. Eyes long oval, projecting forward and outward; median ocellus dramatically larger than lateral ocelli, circular; lateral ocelli small. Apical segments of maxillary palpi as long as subapical ones, apices slightly inflated.
Thorax. Anterior margin of pronotum slightly projecting, posterior margin substraight, lateral lobes longer than high, posterior margin of ventral margin slightly extending to downward (Fig. 1C). Fore coxae with 1 small spine. Fore and middle femora unarmed on ventral surfaces; hind femora with 6–11 internal spines and 8–9 external spines on ventral surface. Fore and middle tibiae ventrally with 4 pairs of spurs and 1 pair of apical spurs: hind tibiae with 6–7 pairs of spines dorsally, subapices with 1 pair of spurs ventrally, apices with 1 pair of dorsal spurs and 2 pairs of ventral spurs. Tegmina and hind wings considerably surpassing the apex of abdomen.
Abdomen. Abdomen without traces of femoro-abdominal apparatus. Ninth abdominal tergite strongly prolonged downward (Fig. 1D), subtrapezoidal in dorsal view (Fig. 1E), lateral margins converging, posterior margin rounded (Fig. 1F); ventral surface almost flattened with a pair of sclerotized triangular lobes near tenth abdominal tergite (Fig. 1H, I). Tenth abdominal tergite short, usually hidden. Subgenital plate broader than long, posterior margin with a shallow concavity in the middle (Fig. 1H). Styli conical, located on posterior-apical areas of the subgenital plate (Fig. 1H).
Female. Seventh abdominal sternite normal, followed by a sclerotised transverse bulge (Fig. 2G). Subgenital plate longer than wide, narrowing to the apex, posterior margin substraight, indistinctly excavated in middle (Fig. 2F). Ovipositor longer than length of hind femora, straight, apices narrowly rounded (Fig. 2E).
Coloration. Body yellowish brown. Head reddish brown, face black (Figs. 1A, 2A), fastigium verticis with a black spot in middle. Eyes black, behind margin with a longitudinal black strip on each side (Figs. 1B, 2B); ocelli pale yellow. Internal margins and ventral margins of antennal socket black, internal surfaces of scape and pedicel black. Pronotum brown with black margins, anterior and posterior margins with a pair of black spots separately (Figs. 1B, 2B), lateral lobes with irregular black spots along the V-shaped furrow (Figs. 1C, 2C). Apices of hind femora black; tibiae blackish with black spines. Sclerites of ventral surface of ninth abdominal tergite black.
Measurements (mm). BL: ♂ 27.82, ♀ 23.69; PL: ♂ 7.21, ♀ 6.99; TL: ♂ 32.98, ♀ 29.33; HFL: ♂ 16.98, ♀ 16.70; OvL: 27.37.
Distribution. China (Yunnan).
Etymology. The name of the new species is derived from Latin nigr (black) plus front (face), alluding to the black face.
description: Published as part of Luo, Ting & Bian, Xun, 2025, Contribution to the knowledge of Chinese Gryllacrididae (Orthoptera: Ensifera: Stenopelmatoidea) XXVII: One new species of the genus Ultragryllacris Gorochov & Dawwrueng, 2015 from China, pp. 173-176 in Zootaxa 5575 (1) on pages 174-176, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5575.1.9, http://zenodo.org/record/14746655