Two New Species of Ripipterygidae (Orthoptera, Tridactyloidea) from Mid-Cretaceous of Myanmar with a Key to the Genera of Tridactyloidea in Amber

Insects. 2022 Oct 25;13(11):979. doi: 10.3390/insects13110979.

Abstract

The abundance of insects in Burmese amber illustrates a highly diverse orthoptera community of the mid-Cretaceous, but the records of ripipterygids are relatively rare. Here, we reviewed the genus of Magnidactylus (Xu, Fang and Jarzembowski, 2020) and transfered it from Tridactylidae to Ripipterygidae. Based on four ambers specimens collected from northern Myanmar, two new species, Magnidactylusmirus sp. nov. and Magnidactylusgracilis sp. nov., wereerected. M.mirus sp. nov. can be characterized by its basal segment and apical segment of paraproctal lobes, which are equally thick and clavate. M.gracilis sp. nov. can be characterized by its apical segment of paraproctal lobes, which are distinctly swollen. Additionally, in order to facilitate the classification of amber specimens of Tridactyloidea, a key to the genera ofambers in this superfamily is provided.

Keywords: Kachin Province; Magnidactylus; mud crickets; north Myanmar; revision.