Vinpietri cahatianae, Vinpietri yapae
Vinpietri cahatianae and Vinpietri yapae. (Photos: Laurent Fauvre)

In March 2024, descriptions of two new insect species from the Philippines, as well as the proposal of a new genus, were published in Annales Zoologici.

New Genus – ๐™‘๐™ž๐™ฃ๐™ฅ๐™ž๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ง๐™ž

The newly named genus ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช belongs to the hemipteran family Cercopidae, which includes the insects we call froghoppers or spittlebugs. ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช species are similar in general shape and color to another Cercopidae genus, Jacobsoniella. Notably, though, the backs of ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช insects feature โ€œlightning boltsโ€ due to the white or yellowish color patterns on their thickened forewings (tegmina). Thus, the researchers decided to name the genus after Vincent Pietri, who works in the electric power industry.

๐™‘๐™ž๐™ฃ๐™ฅ๐™ž๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ง๐™ž ๐™˜๐™–๐™๐™–๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™–๐™ฃ๐™–๐™š

Distribution/habitat: Polillo Island and Luzon Island, Philippines (Type locality: Laguna, Luzon Island)

Endemic: Yes

Distinctive traits: Smaller than a pencil’s eraser, ๐˜. ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ is approximately 5 mm long (including its tegmina) and 2 mm wide. It is similar in appearance to the other newly described ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช species, ๐˜. ๐˜บ๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ. However, ๐˜. ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ sports a yellowish-white scutellum (the triangular shield on its back) with an almond-shaped black spot in the middle.

Conservation status: Unspecified

Described by: Elorde Crispolon Jr. and Adeline Soulier-Perkins

Etymology: The species was named after the first authorโ€™s former mentor, Dr. Purificacion O. Cahatian, who inspired him to become an insect taxonomist.

๐™‘๐™ž๐™ฃ๐™ฅ๐™ž๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ง๐™ž ๐™ฎ๐™–๐™ฅ๐™–๐™š

Distribution/habitat: Luzon Island and Mindanao Island, Philippines (Type locality: Mt. Apo, Mindanao Island)

Endemic: Yes

Distinctive traits: ๐˜. ๐˜บ๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ is approximately the same size as ๐˜. ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ. The scutellum of ๐˜. ๐˜บ๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ฆ is black with three small, whitish spots.

Conservation status: Unspecified

Described by: Elorde Crispolon Jr. and Maxime Le Cesne

Etymology: The species was named after the authorsโ€™ hemipterist colleague Prof. Sheryl A. Yap, who was also one of the first authorโ€™s mentors.

Significance

Prior to the discovery and description of these species, the Philippines had 19 known genera of Cercopidae, with 70 species and nine subspecies; 87% of these are endemic. This recently published research โ€” which describes another new genus (๐˜—๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข) and two new species under it (๐˜—. ๐˜จ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ค๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ช and ๐˜—. ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช) โ€” encourages further study and exploration of the Philippinesโ€™ biodiverse islands.โ€”MF


Reference:

Elorde Crispolon Jr.,ย Maxime Le Cesne,ย andย Adeline Soulier-Perkinsย “Description of Two New Philippine Genera Close toย Jacobsoniellaย Melichar (Hemiptera: Cercopidae),”ย Annales Zoologiciย 74(1), 17-42, (30 March 2024).ย https://doi.org/10.3161/00034541ANZ2024.74.1.002

Author: Mikael Angelo Francisco

Bitten by the science writing bug, Mikael has years of writing and editorial experience under his belt. As the editor-in-chief of FlipScience, Mikael has sworn to help make science more fun and interesting for geeky readers and casual audiences alike.