Lophotettix Hancock 1909

Lophotettix Hancock, 1909

Type species: Lophotettix brevicristatus Hancock, 1909

Etymology of Lophotettix: Derived from the Greek λóφος (pronounced lófos): crest, ridge.

Diagnosis. Facial carinae arched (lateral view), fusiform and forming broad scutellum (frontal view); antennae flattened but not foliaceous, laterally expanding from the base to the apex having a incrassate shape (Fig. 1), with 11 segments (with a distinguishable acute apical segment) and the latter segment is pale; pronotum not towards the front of the head, compresso-cristated median carina or a leaf-like crest (Figs. 2A, 3A, 4A, 5A, 6A), in some species translucent, punctate when held against the light; fore and middle femurs carinated; hind femur robust, carinated and/or with lappets.

Composition. The subfamily has only one genus with five species: Lophotettix alticristatus Hancock, 1909; L. brevicristatus Hancock, 1909; L. hancocki (Bruner, 1910); L. unicristatus Hancock, 1909 and L. zumbadoi Barranco, 2010.

Comparative notes. There are other tetrigids that share two characters occurring in this Neotropical subfamily: (i) flattened but not foliaceous antennae, laterally expanding from the base to the apex having an incrassate shape and (ii) the median carina compresso-cristated or a leaf-like crest. However, in the first case, Tripetalocerinae can be distinguished from Lophotettiginae by the number of antennae segments and the shape of each segment (see Discussion section). Regarding the shape of median carina, some cladonotines taxa share morphological similarities with Lophotettiginae but also can be easily told apart by: (i) the anterior margin of median carina not surpassing the fastigium in Lophotettiginae; (ii) the filiform antennae in cladonotines and (iii) the facial carinae fusiform (in frontal view) in Lophotettiginae.