Research Article Journal of Orthoptera Research 2022, 31(2): 197-200 First record of Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus for Peru and South America (Orthoptera, Myrmecophilidae) NicoLAs NAVEDA YUAN!, THOMAS STALLING? 1 Jr. Cayalti 373, Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru. 2 Méndenweg 26, 79594 Inzlingen, Germany. Corresponding author: Nicolas Yuan Naveda (nyuannaveda@gmail.com) Academic editor: Maria-Marta Cigliano | Received 22 March 2022 | Accepted 4 July 2022 | Published 1 November 2022 https://zoobank. org/DF93E134-A1B2-4AAE-8CA4-5B30EOFF3AF6 Citation: Yuan NN, Stalling T (2022) First record of Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus for Peru and South America (Orthoptera, Myrmecophilidae). Journal of Orthoptera Research 31(2): 197-200. https://doi.org/10.3897/jor.31.84157 Abstract The first record of the ant cricket Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus Perkins, 1899 for Peru and South America is presented. This species was discovered in the city of Lima in the nests of the ant species Brachymyrmex cordemoyi Forel, 1895, and Pheidole sp. Westwood, 1939 un- der a square brick and a stone in two urban gardens. Keywords ants, faunistics, first record, myrmecophiles, neotropics, South America Introduction Ant crickets of the genus Myrmecophilus Berthold, 1827 are small orthopterans known to live as guests in ant nests. Their main distinctive morphological features are their minute size, wingless and ovoid body, slightly long antennae, and oversized hind femora. Their specific body color and the number of spurs on the hind leg are diagnostic characteristics along with the male genitalia and female ovipositor’s shape variability (Desutter- Grandcolas 1997, Hebard 1920, Stalling and Birrer 2013, Hsu et al. 2020). Ant crickets are myrmecophiles that live among ants in their nests, probably developing mimicry without inducing aggressive behavior (Hdlldobler 1947). Myrmecophilus species can be associated with dozens of ant species (H6lldobler 1947, Masloski and Greenwood 2013). Some Myrmecophilus species are host-specific, whereas other species are host-generalists and use a wide range of host ant species (Komatsu et al. 2009). Living in the ant nests, they enjoy stable environmental conditions, easy access to food, and a place to hide (H6lldobler and Wilson 1990, Iorgu et al. 2021). Past studies have shown that they pri- marily feed on the secretions resulting from strigilating their legs with their body and participating in trophallaxis with the ants by imitating their grooming behavior (Wheeler 1900, Wetterer and Hugel 2008). To date, the genus Myrmecophilus includes 63 valid species from three subgenera that have been described worldwide (Hsu et al. 2020, Cigliano et al. 2022). From South America, only Myr- mecophilus (Myrmophilina) americanus Saussure, 1877 was reported in Brazil and Colombia (Saussure 1877, Wasmann 1905, Wetterer and Hugel 2008). The genus was also found in Peru by Monica Narrea Cango (unpublished data), but these findings were never published and the species remained unidentified. Methods Ant nests were checked for ant crickets in Lima (Peru) in 2020 and 2021, by the first author. The ant nests were found by turning square bricks and stones from gardens in a 450-m radius around the first author's house. The specimens were caught, frozen, and then preserved in 96% ethanol. Two specimens were preserved in the collection of the first author, which were identified to the family level using the dichotomous keys in Borror and Delong’s Introduction to the Study of Insects 7 ed. (Triplehorn and John- son 2005). Myrmecophilus identification was performed using the criteria of Desutter-Grandcolas (1997), Hsu et al. (2020) and by direct comparison with specimens of Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophi- lus) quadrispinus Perkins, 1899 from France (oversea department Réunion), Japan, and Taiwan and with specimens of Myrmecophi- lus (Myrmophilina) americanus from Taiwan, Malaysia and Israel, which are deposited in the collection of Thomas Stalling. The ants associated with the Myrmecophilus specimens were also collected. The identification was performed following Bolton (1994) and Ortiz (2012) and with the kind support extended by Claudia M. Ortiz Sepulveda for the identification of Brachymyrmex cordemoyi Forel, 1895. The Pheidole species has not been further identified. Around one hundred Pheidole species are known from Peru, some of which are difficult to identify. The cockroaches associated with the Brachymyrmex ant species found were identified following An- isyutkin (2018) and Roth (1998). JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 31(2) 198 Results and discussion Family Myrmecophilidae Saussure, 1874 Subfamily Myrmecophilinae Saussure, 1874 Tribe Myrmecophilini Saussure, 1874 Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus Perkins, 1899 Material examined.— PERU ¢ 1 adult 9; Lima province, Lima; 12°06'19.2"S, 76°58'13.3"W, 170 m a.s.l.; July 2020; in the nest of Brachymyrmex cordemoyi Forel, 1895, leg. Nicolas Yuan Naveda ¢ 1 adult 9; Lima province, Lima; 12°6'25.319"S, 76°58'21.238"W, 169 a.s.l., November 2020; in the nest of Phei- dole sp., leg. Nicolas Yuan Naveda e 1 adult 3, Lima province, Lima, 12:°6'25:319"S,.. 76°58 :21°238"'W,. 169) /a.s.l.,..November 2021, leg. Nicolas Yuan Naveda. A first adult female of M. (M.) quadrispinus was found in July 2020 and a second adult female in November 2020. Both specimens were found and collected from an ant nest under a square brick and a stone, respectively. An adult male speci- men was found and collected in November 2021, in an ant nest under a stone. The habitat associated with the gardens was an urban area with several houses, buildings, tracks, sidewalks, and parks (Fig. 1). The three adult specimens were identified as M. (M.) quadrispi- nus on the basis of their unique combination of characters: uni- form dark brown coloration of the head and body, yellowish cerci (Fig. 2), three dorsal spines positioned in the proximal, medial and distal portions of the metatarsus and outer ovipositor valvae of female (viewed laterally) double pointed (Fig. 3). All other Myr- mecophilus species show either a different coloration of the body or cerci, a different shape of the ovipositor, or a different number or position of the spines on the tarsus. The Myrmecophilus species of North America are distinguished by body color (pale ochreous in M. (Myrmecophilus) manni Schimmer, 1911 and M. (Myrmecophi- lus) nebrascensis Lugger, 1898) and by the color of the cerci (dark brown in M. (Myrmecophilus) pergandei Bruner, 1884 and M. (Myr- mecophilus) oregonensis Bruner, 1884), among other characteristics. Additionally, the ants found associated with the female speci- mens were identified as Brachymyrmex cordemoyi Forel, 1895, and Pheidole sp. Westwood, 1939. The first species coexisted with the cockroach Pycnoscelus surinamensis (Linnaeus, 1758). This finding agrees with those of Moretti et al. (2011) indicating that B. cor- demoyi may be associated with P. surinamensis and hence exhibit- ing domiciliation trend. No ants were detected associated with the male specimen, but the site was only three meters from where the second female was found. Ant cricket nymphs were also found, but they fled away. Both nymphs and adults were mixed in ant colonies. B. cor- demoyi and Pheidole sp. host ants are smaller than M. (M.) quad- rispinus adults. The finding of M. (M.) quadrispinus represents the first record for Peru and all South America. M. (M.) quadrispinus was previ- ously known from the tropics and subtropics of southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean (Hsu et al. 2020). The ant crickets are dif- ficult to find because of their cryptic mode of living in the ant nests. Therefore, we can assume that M. (M.) quadrispinus or other Myrmecophilus species can be found in other regions of Peru and South America in the future. N.N. YUAN, T. STALLING I _ | | 19 Ue ee eg oe — ae ae Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus; Peru, Lima, November 2020. Photo: NYN. Fig. 2. Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus, female; Peru, Lima, July 2020. Habitus, showing the typical shape and uniform brown body color of the species. Photo: NYN. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 31(2) N.N. YUAN, T. STALLING Hind leg Outer view Inner view Imm Female ovipositor Lateral view Ventral view 0.5mm Fig. 3. Myrmecophilus (Myrmecophilus) quadrispinus, female; Peru, Lima, July 2020. Details of the hind leg and the ovipositor of a fe- male. Illustration: NYN. Acknowledgements We are grateful to Amir Weinstein (Tel Aviv, Israel), Samuel Danflous (Toulouse, France), Takashi Komatsu (Fukuoka, Japan), Munetoshi Maruyama (Fukuoka, Japan), and Po-Wei Hsu (Kyoto, Japan) for providing Myrmecophilus specimens for comparison, to Claudia M. Ortiz Septilveda (Lille, France) for her help in identify- ing the Brachymyrmex species and to Lucas Denadai de Campos (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Pedro Guilherme Barrios de Souza Dias (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) for reviewing the manuscript. Lastly, we want to thank the Journal of Orthoptera Research for their support in publishing this article. 199 References Anisyutkin L (2018) New data on the genus Pycnoscelus Scudder, 1862 with the description of P. schwendingeri sp. nov. (Blaberidae: Pycnosceli- nae). 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