Ciglianacris submontana Cadena-Castañeda & Granda, 2017, n. sp.

Ciglianacris submontana n. sp.

http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid: Orthoptera.speciesfile.org:TaxonName:478604

Holotype. Male, Colombia, Cundinamarca, Venecia. Cundinamarca, 1500 m. at 4° 5'30.93"N, 74°27'38.85"W; May 2014. J. Cardona leg. (CAUD).

Paratypes. Same data as Holotype 2 males and two females, but of June 2015 A. Zapata & D. Rueda leg. 1 female, Boyacá, Coper, Vereda Turtur, Sector San Ignacio, 1600 m. 5°25'32.03"N, 74° 0'15.24"W. December 2015. O.J. Cadena-Castañeda leg. (CAUD).

Description. Male. Slender, fusiform body, moderately rugose, abundantly covered with hairs all over (Figs. 1–2). Coloration. Mostly light brown to beige, with reddish brown antennae, purplish eyes spotted with small whitish dots, post-ocular stripe present, tegmina, pronotal disc and upper area of the lateral lobes dark brown; abdomen, cephalic capsule and lower margin of the lateral lobes beige-brown. Legs olive-green (turning yellowish when specimens are preserved in alcohol). Genicular lobe of hind femora and distal region of tarsi reddish-brown; meso-metanotum and the four first abdominal tergites with a black side-stripe (Fig. 17). Head. Fastigium rounded, moderately projecting from between the eyes. Frontal costa slightly curved; eyes round, not very bulging. Filiform antennae, with 20 segments (Fig. 3). Thorax. Prosternal spine conical, slightly curved towards the lower margin of the prosternum. Pronotum with fore margin straight and hind margin pointed and rounded. Midline of pronotum slightly raised, all the way from fore to hind margin. Prozona and metazona bounded by transverse sulcus. Tegmina ovoid, evenly reticulated, not touching dorsally and extending to the base of the second abdominal tergite (Fig. 4). Fore and mid-femora robust, fore and mid tibiae with 4–5 spines on both sides of the ventral side. Hind femora with conspicuous chevrons, hind tibia with 9 dorso-external and 10 dorso-internal spines. Abdomen. Tenth tergite narrow; reduced, almost nonexistent furcula. Subtriangular epiproct, with a rounded tip; mid impression all the way to almost the middle of the epiproct length, distal portion of the epiproct slightly depressed (Figs. 5, 6). Cerci laterally flattened, tapering and curving upwards from the middle (Fig. 5). Subgenital plate cupuliform, with a straight distal margin and with the protruding pallium covering the genitalia completely (Figs. 5–6). Phallic complex. Well sclerotized epiphallus, bridge margins straight, conical and prominent lophi (Fig. 7); endophallic plates foliaceous and wide (Figs. 8, 9), long and slim aedeagus valves, diverging away towards the tip, which is less sclerotized than the rest of the valves (Figs. 9, 11). Sheath of the aedeagus membranous, covering most of the aedeagus (Figs. 10, 11).

Female. Stouter than the males (Figs. 12, 18), anterior margin of the pronotum rounded, hind margin straight; tegmina noticeably separated in dorsal view, covering only the tip of the metanotum (Fig. 13); coloration of the two pairs of legs and hind femora beige-brownish; some females have slight spots in the ventral side of femora, and fore and mid tibiae. Spaces between the chevrons of hind femora dark brown; hind tibiae olive green (Fig. 18). Triangular epiproctus, with a rounded tip, medial impression present extending up to the third of the total length of the epiproctus; short, conical cerci (Fig. 14). Dorsal valve of ovipositor a little longer than the ventral valve, evenly wavy and denticulate (Fig. 15); subgenital plate with wavy hind margin (Fig. 16).

Etymology. The specific name refers to the mid-to lower elevations where the species has been found.

Measurements (in mm) male/female. LB: 16–17.2/21–22.5, Pr: 3.3–3.5/3.5–3.7, Teg: 2–2.2/2.5–2.8, HF: 9.5–10.2/10.5–11, HF: 10–10.5/11–12.

Comments. Determined as “unknown Melanopline” in Cardona, 2015.

Ecology. This species has been found in meadows and forest border in knee-high grass and forbs, mostly seen feeding on the latter, never high in the bushes. It seems to prefer wet, slightly shaded areas at the border of tree groves; instead of jumping away (although it does), when approached it most often drops to the tangled undergrowth, making them difficult to catch or observe. The species described is fairly common and even abundant, but not easily seen due to their cryptic color, and because it inhabits lower levels of the vegetation, where they can be overlooked or confused with more common species (such as Orphulella spp.). Often found along with Psilocirtus splendidus Hebard, 1923, Phaeoparia bicolor (Hebard, 1923) and Caenomastax spp. The species seems to be more abundant in the Eastern Cordillera, but along with P. splendidus, it seems to have colonized a few spots in the Eastern flank of the Central Cordillera (at the other side of the Magdalena River), at roughly the same latitudes it is found in the Eastern Cordillera, where it could be widespread.