New Agraeciini species from the Eastern Arc Mountains, East Africa(Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae; Conocephalinae; Agraeciini).

Abstract

Eleven new Agraeciini species are described. Six species of Afroanthracites are new to science from the North and South Pare, the West and East Usambara, the Udzungwa Mountains of Tanzania, and the Taita Hills of Kenya. The two Afroanthracites Hemp Ingrisch, 2013 species from the Pare Mountains, A. guttatus n. sp. and A. maculatus n. sp., and A. magamba n. sp., from Magamba Forest Reserve in the West Usambara Mountains are morphologically closely related to each other and form a morphological lineage with the already described species from the West Usambara Mountains (A. discolor Hemp, Ingrisch Ünal, 2013 and A. pseudodiscolor Hemp, 2015) and A. pommeri n. sp. from the Taita Hills of Kenya. A. lineatus n. sp. from Lutindi Forest Reserve in the East Usambara Mountains has its morphologically closest relative in A. jagoi Ünal Hemp, 2013 endemic to the Mazumbai Forest Reserve of the West Usambara Mountains while A. montium (Sjöstedt, 1910) from the Kilimanjaro/Meru area, A. inopinatus n. sp. from the South Pare Mountains and A. usambaricus (Sjöstedt, 1913) from the West Usambara Mountains form another morphological lineage. Morphological traits like the shape of the last abdominal tergite in males, the male cerci and the colour pattern suggest at least two lineages reflecting dispersal of the ancestors at a time when forest connected the mountain ranges in the past during climatic fluctuations. In the genus Afroagraecia Ingrisch Hemp, 2013 new species were collected on Zanzibar and in Kazimzumbwi Forest Reserve, the Udzungwa and Nguru Mountains. Distribution patterns and the morphology suggest recent speciation patterns of Afroagraecia in the Eastern Arc Mountains and along the Tanzanian coast. From the Nguru Mountains a third Dendrobia species of the genus, D. plagata n. sp., is described.