Orthoptera Species File (Version 5.0/5.0)
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Content:  Proanaxipha madgesuttonae is clearly congeneric with the type species P. latoca, sharing the partially reduced stridulatory apparatus, a long and straight metabasitarsus, similar metatibial armature and the presence of auditory tympana on both faces of the protibia (see Gorochov, 2010). Nevertheless, P. madgesuttonae differs markedly from P. latoca in its colouration. The new species is altogether darker than P. latoca, bearing a distinctive posteriorly bilobed colour spot on the vertex of the head capsule (Fig. 4) and a much darker tegmen. The apical field of the tegmen in P. latoca is either pale or bears a few diffuse dark patches (see Gorochov, 2010, p. 443, fig. 6). In contrast, the apical field in P. madgesuttonae is entirely dark (Fig. 3). The holotype of P. latoca bears two dark spots on the vertex between the eyes but the rest of the head capsule is pale (see Vickery & Poinar, 1994, p. 21, fig. 9). Gorochov (2010) briefly described a number of additional specimens that he tentatively assigned to P. latoca. However, all of these differ from the holotype in coloration and Gorochov (op. cit., p. 444) remarked that they likely represent a complex of distinct species. While the original colouration of the specimen cannot be known with certainty, arthropod colour patterns are often extremely well preserved in amber (Poinar, 1993; Grimaldi & Engel, 2005; Penney 2010 and contributions therein). Given the remarkable preservation of the specimen as well as the obvious symmetry of the patterns, it is highly unlikely that they have been altered taphonomically. Morphologically, P. madgesuttonae is very similar to the holotype of P. latoca and to the specimens recently described by Gorochov (2010). However, the tegminal venation of P. madgesuttonae differs in the presence of six crossveins in the basal half of the mediocubital area (Fig. 3). The tegmina are not clearly illustrated in the original description of P. latoca making it impossible to determine whether or not these crossveins are present. However, the illustrations of P. ?latoca presented by Gorochov (2010) show no mediocubital crossveins. The distal parts of the phallic complex visible in the holotype of P. madgesuttonae (Fig. 8) are very similar to those illustrated by Gorochov (2010) though the median process of the epiphallus is shorter in P. madgesuttonae.

Source of information:  Heads & Penney. 2012. In Heads; Penney & D.I. Green. A new fossil cricket of the genus Proanaxipha in Miocene amber from the Dominican Republic (Orthoptera, Gryllidae, Pentacentrinae). ZooKeys. 229:113-116

Date last modified:  Thursday, October 18, 2012
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