Danatettix hoffeinsorum: A new species of Pygmy Grasshopper from Eocene Baltic Amber.

Pygmy Grasshoppers (Tetrigidae) are small Orthopteran Insects related to True Grasshoppers, Crickets and Katydids, found across much of the globe but most numerous and diverse in the tropics. The name ‘Pygmy Grasshoppes’ is somewhat misleading, as they seldom feed on Grass, instead mainly consuming Bryophytes (Mosses), Algae, Lichens and only the occasional small vascular plant; the group are also known as Grouse Locusts or Ground Hoppers. Surprisingly for Orthopterans, many species are capable swimmers, and live semi-aquatic lifestyles. They are a large group today, with over 1700 described species, however their fossil record is rather limited, with only eleven fossil species described to date.

In a new paper published in the journal Zootaxa on 16 August 2019, Jared Thomas of the Center for Paleontology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Josip Skejo of the Evolution Lab at the University of Zagreb, and the Institute for Molecular Evolution at Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, and Sam Heads, also of the Center for Paleontology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, describe a new species of Pygmy Grasshopper from Eocene Baltic Amber.

Baltic amber is the preserved resin of Eocene Coniferous Trees that formed huge forests covering much of Scandinavia and Northern Europe between about 56 and 34 million years ago. Since this amber floats, it is often found on beaches around the Baltic Sea, and sometimes further afield, making the precise dating of individual pieces difficult, though most Baltic Amber is thought to be about 46 million years old.

The new species is named Danatettix hoffeinsorum, where 'Danatettix' means 'Dana's Grasshopper' in honour of Katie Dana, the wife of Jared Thomas, for stimulating his interest in Insects, and 'hoffeinsorum' honours Christel and Hans Hoffeins for their efforts in collecting Baltic Amber; the specimens from which the species is described come from the Hoffeins' collection, but will be donated to the Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut in Müncheberg. The new species is described from three specimens, an adult female and two nymphal (immature) males.

Dorsal oblique view adult female Danatettix hoffeinsorum. (1) Photograph. (2) Line drawing. Scale bars are 1 mm. Thomas et al. (2019).

The anterior (front) margin of the pronotum (plate that covers the back of the thorax) is truncated in Danatettix hoffeinsorum, a trait seen in members of the living genera Paurotarsus and Eutettigidea, which are found in Central and South America. This is interesting because like them Danatettix hoffeinsorum appears to be a member of the subfamily Batrachideinae, which today is found in the Americas, Africa, Australia, and parts of tropical Asia, but not Europe. This suggests that the subfamily was more widely distributed in the past.

Left lateral image of early instar male nymph of Danatettix hoffeinsorum. (9) Photograph. (10) Line drawing. Scale bars are 1 mm. Thomas et al. (2019).

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Arulenus miae: A new species of Pygmy Devil from Mindanao Island (& Facebook).

Pygmy Devils, Discotettiginae, are small members of the Tetrigidae (Dwarf Grasshoppers) from South and East Asia. They are generally terrestrial, feeding on Algae and Bryophytes (Non-vascular Plants), though some species are semi-aquatic and feed on aquatic Algae and Plants.

In a paper published in the journal Zootaxa on 22 January 2016, Josep Skejo of the Special Interest Group Tetrigidae of the Biology Students Association at the Department of Biology at University of Zagreb and Joy Caballero of the Department of Biology at Central Mindanao University describe a new species of Pygmy Devil from Mindanao Island in the Philippines.

The new species was first recognized by Josep Skejo from a photograph posted on the Orthoptera Facebook group, with specimens later found for sale on the LesColeopteres webpage. The species was subsequently located in the wild by a team led by Alma Mohagan of the Central Mindanao University. It is placed in the genus Arulenus, and given the specific name miae, in honour of Miae Jurić, a student of Fashion and Textile Design at the Faculty of Textile Technology at the University of Zagreb, and friend of Josep Skejo. 

Original Facebook image of the first specimen of Arulenus maiae. Leif Gabrielsen in Skejo & Caballero (2016).

The species is large for a Pygmy Devil, with the largest specimens reaching about 13 mm in length. Its body has a generally smooth texture, covered in small granulations. They are predominantly black in colour, with a black or dark brown head, with yellow eyes and a number of yellow tubercles and dorsal spines with red tips.

 Skejo and Caballero further note that social media present a great deal of potential for natural historians in general and entomologists in particular, with images being shared on a variety of platforms, such as EBay and Flikr, and in particular Facebook, where there are a number of specialist groups for entomologists and orthopterists, such as Entomology, Insect Identification, InsectIndia, Orthoptera, The Orthopterists Society and Orthotera of Thailand.

See also...

A new species of Pygmy Grasshopper from Miocene Dominican amber.                      Pygmy Grasshoppers (Tetrigidae) are small Orthopteran Insects related to True Grasshoppers, Crickets and Katydids, found across much of the globe but most numerous and diverse in the tropics...

A new species of Cockroach Wasp from Thailand.                                               Cockroach Wasps (Ampulicidae) are a group of Digger Wasps (Aculeata) which specialize in the hunting of Cockroach prey. Some of these Wasps are...

A new species of Green Lacewing discovered on Flikr®.                                                   Green Lacewings (Chrysopidae) are a globally distributed group of carnivorous flying Insects, ranging from 6 to 65 mm in length (though the larger... 

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A new species of Pygmy Grasshopper from Miocene Dominican amber.

Pygmy Grasshoppers (Tetrigidae) are small Orthopteran Insects related to True Grasshoppers, Crickets and Katydids, found across much of the globe but most numerous and diverse in the tropics. The name ‘Pygmy Grasshoppes’ is somewhat misleading, as they seldom feed on Grass, instead mainly consuming Bryophytes (Mosses), Algae, Lichens and only the occasional small vascular plant; the group are also known as Grouse Locusts or Ground Hoppers. Surprisingly for Orthopterans, many species are capable swimmers, and live semi-aquatic lifestyles. They are a large group today, with over 1700 described species, however their fossil record is rather limited, with only eight previously described species, including two from Cretaceous volcano-sedimentary deposits in Russia, two from Eocene Baltic amber, one from the Eocene Green River Formation of the US, one from the Miocene of Oeningen in Switzerland and two previous species described from Miocene Dominican amber.

In a paper published in the journal ZooKeys on 30 July 2014, Sam Heads and Jarred Thomas of the Illinois Natural History Survey at the Prairie Research Institute of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Yinan Wang of Arlington Virginia, describe a new species of Pygmy Grasshopper from Miocene Dominican amber.

The new species is named Electrotettix attenboroughi, where ‘Electrotettix’ means ‘Amber-grasshopper’ and ‘attenboroughi’ honours Sir David Attenborough, the distinguished British broadcaster and naturalist, for his role in inspiring a generation of natural scientists. The species is described from a single female specimen, 8 mm in length. 

Electrotettix attenboroughi in left lateral view, photograph (top) and explanatory drawing (bottom). Heads et al. (2014).

Electrotettix attenboroughi resembles many modern members of the Subfamily Cladonotinae from the Caribbean, and is placed within this group. However all modern members of the Cladontinae are wingless, while a small hind-wing is preserved in Electrotettix attenboroughi. While it is not thought likely that this wing could have been used for flying, it is significant to find a residual wing in an Insect which appears to be more related to modern Caribbean Cladonotinae than modern non-Caribbean species, as this suggests that wing-loss has occurred separately at least twice within the group. 

The preserved right hindwing of Electrotettix attenboroughi. Scale bar is 0.25 mm. Heads et al. (2014).

The Cladonotinae are the dominant group of Pygmy Grasshoppers in the Caribbean comprising around 70% of modern species and all known fossils, though they are only a minor part of the fauna in neighbouring parts of Central and South America. The group appear to have a complex evolutionary history in the islands that matches the complex geological history of the islands themselves, where plate movements have driven the rapid formation, migration, breakup and merging of islands, as well as the development of mountain ranges within the islands, leading to a complex network of different micro-environments, connecting and separating to one-another  on a timescale of only a few million years, while reaming separate from any major landmass, a prefect environment for the rapid evolution of new species in a group of small, flightless Insects.

See also…

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The Dominican Republic hosts three sites noted for the production of exceptionally clear amber with numerous preserved Insects, together regarded as a fossil Lagarstätte. The amber is thought to be the preserved resin of an extinct tropical tree, Hymenaea protera, a type...

 An early Cricket from southeast India.

The Protogryllidae are a family of early Crickets known mainly from the Jurassic of Eurasia, with some members known from the Late...

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