| Hemp, C; Kehl, S: Taxonomic changes and new species of the flightless genus Parepistaurus Karsch, 1896 (Orthoptera: Acrididae, Coptacridinae) from mountainous East Africa, Journal of Orthoptera Research, 19, 31-39 (2010) | |
| Abstract: Two new species of the flightless genus Parepistaurus, occurring on high mountains of northern Tanzania, are described in this paper. P. hanangensis n. sp. is an inhabitant of the montane zone of Mt Hanang, a solitary volcano of northwestern Tanzania. P. uguenoensis n. sp. occurs in the North Pare Mts, a mountain range of the northern branch of the Eastern Arc chain. Both species have their closest relatives in species of adjacent situated mountain areas, as seen in their morphology and molecular phylogeny. Phylogenetic reconstructions were performed for three genes [16S rRNA gene, cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and the histone gene H3], using different assumptions on sequence evolution. The closest relative of P. uguenoensis is P. deses from Mt Kilimanjaro, a geologically young volcano. The closest morphological and molecular relative of P. hanangensis is P. manyara, distributed along mountainous ranges of the rift-valley escarpment. The molecular relationship of the investigated taxa suggests that the subspecies of P. deses should receive species status. |
