Australian Cicada Research Articles

New cicada fossils from Australia (Hemiptera: Cicadoidea: Cicadidae) with remarkably detailed wing surface nanostructure

Australia hosts the richest diversity of extant cicadas in the world, but a scarcity of fossils means that little is known about their evolutionary history on the continent. Here we describe the first fossilized Cicadidae from Australia. Laopsaltria ferruginosa gen. et sp. nov., Burbungoides gulgongensis gen. et sp. nov. and Tithopsaltria titan gen. et sp. nov. were all found at McGraths Flat near Gulgong, New South Wales, a recently discovered Miocene Lagerstätte. These cicada fossils preserve remarkable detail, including setae and wing membrane surface structures. Wing size varies considerably between the three newly described species and, in T. titan sp. nov., reaches a maximum size beyond what is known from extant Australian cicadas (or any other known cicada fossil), indicating a disparate cicada fauna in Australia’s Miocene rainforests. Max Moulds [ msmoulds@gmail.com ], Australian Museum Research Institute, 1 William Street, Sydney, New South Wales 2010, Australia. Michael Frese [ michael.frese@canberra.edu.au ], Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Canberra, Bruce, Australian Capital Territory 2601, Australia; Australian Museum Research Institute, 1 William Street, Sydney, New South Wales 2010, Australia; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Health and Biosecurity, Black Mountain, Australian Capital Territory 2601, Australia. M. R. McCurry [ matthew.mccurry@australian.museum ], Australian Museum Research Institute, 1 William Street, Sydney, New South Wales 2010, Australia; Earth and Sustainability Science Research Centre, School of BEES, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia; Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, District of Columbia 20560, USA.

Thermal responses of some Australian cicadas (Insecta: Hemiptera: Cicadidae)

We determine the thermal responses for 22 species from 16 genera, nine tribes and two subfamilies of Australian cicadas. Thermal responses are related to habitat and possibly to behavior. The thermal responses of the Australian species show convergent patterns to the cicadas in similar environments in Africa, Europe, North America, and South America. The study illustrates that similar evolutionary pressures select for similar thermal adaptation regardless of geographic locality or species phylogeny.

How the Aridification of Australia Structured the Biogeography and Influenced the Diversification of a Large Lineage of Australian Cicadas.

Over the last 30 million years, Australia's landscape has undergone dramatic cooling and drying due to the establishment of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and change in global CO$_{2}$ levels. Studies have shown that many Australian organisms went extinct during these major cooling events, while others experienced adaptive radiations and increases in diversification rates as a result of exploiting new niches in the arid zone. Despite the many studies on diversification and biogeography in Australia, few have been continent-wide and none have focused on a group of organisms adapted to feeding on plants. We studied 162 species of cicadas in the Australian Pauropsalta complex, a large generic lineage within the tribe Cicadettini. We asked whether there were changes in the diversification rate of Pauropsalta over time and if so: 1) which clades were associated with the rate change? 2) did timing of rate shifts correspond to known periods of dramatic historical climate change, 3) did increases in diversification rate along select lineages correspond to adaptive radiations with movement into the arid zone? To address these questions, we estimated a molecular phylogeny of the Pauropsalta complex using ${\sim}$5300 bp of nucleotide sequence data distributed among five loci (one mtDNA locus and four nDNA loci). We found that this large group of cicadas did not diversify at a constant rate as they spread through Australia; instead the signature of decreasing diversification rate changed roughly around the time of the expansion of the east Antarctic ice sheets ${\sim}$16 Ma and the glaciation of the northern hemisphere ${\sim}$3 Ma. Unlike other Australian taxa, the Pauropsalta complex did not explosively radiate in response to an early invasion of the arid zone. Instead multiple groups invaded the arid zone and experienced rates of diversification similar to mesic-distributed taxa. We found evidence for relictual groups, located in pre-Mesozoic habitat, that have not diversified and continue to reside on mesic hosts in isolated "habitat islands". Future work should focus on groups of similar ages with similar distribution patterns to determine whether this tempo and pattern of diversification and biogeography is consistent with evidence from other phytophagous insects.

The phylogenetic utility of acetyltransferase (ARD1) and glutaminyl tRNA synthetase (QtRNA) for reconstructing Cenozoic relationships as exemplified by the large Australian cicada Pauropsalta generic complex

The Pauropsalta generic complex is a large group of cicadas (72 described spp.; >82 undescribed spp.) endemic to Australia. No previous molecular work on deep level relationships within this complex has been conducted, but a recent morphological revision and phylogenetic analysis proposed relationships among the 11 genera. We present here the first comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the complex using five loci (1 mtDNA, 4 nDNA), two of which are from nuclear genes new to cicada systematics. We compare the molecular phylogeny to the morphological phylogeny. We evaluate the phylogenetic informativeness of the new loci to traditional cicada systematics loci to generate a baseline of performance and behavior to aid in gene choice decisions in future systematic and phylogenomic studies. Our maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference phylogenies strongly support the monophyly of most of the newly described genera; however, relationships among genera differ from the morphological phylogeny. A comparison of phylogenetic informativeness among all loci revealed that COI 3rd positions dominate the informativeness profiles relative to all other loci but exhibit some among taxon nucleotide bias. After removing COI 3rd positions, COI 1st positions dominate near the terminals, while the period intron has the most phylogenetic informativeness near the root. Among the nuclear loci, ARD1 and QtRNA have lower phylogenetic informativeness than period intron and elongation factor 1 alpha intron, but the informativeness increases at you move from the tips to the root. The increase in phylogenetic informativeness deeper in the tree suggests these loci may be useful for resolving older relationships.

New species of Drymopsalta Heath Cicadas (Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, with overview of genus.

Three new species are described in the genus Drymopsalta Ewart, previously known only from D. crepitum Ewart and D. daemeli Distant. The three new species occur in Southern Queensland and Northern Territory. D. wallumi sp. nov. occurs along coastal S.E. Queensland, whereas D. hobsoni sp. nov. is restricted to the Bringalily State Forest, near Inglewood, southern inland Queensland. D. acrotela sp. nov. is found in the Litchfield National Park and other locations near Jabaluka, Cahills Crossing, E. Alligator River and Nourlangie, all across the northern Northern Territory. D. crepitum occurs on the Cape York Peninsular extending into the southern Gulf, while D. daemeli occurs in two localised regions in central coastal N.S.W. Each of the species inhabits heath vegetation, often spilling-over into adjacent tree foliage. The species of Drymopsalta are small and inconspicuous cicadas (< 15 mm body length) with relatively high frequency songs (~15 to 22 kHz). The temporal structures of the normal calling songs follow a similar pattern in each species, consisting of the emission of short chirps (comprising 2-16 ticks). Between the chirps are emitted one (D. wallumi, D. hobsoni, D. acrotela), two (D. daemeli) or 1-9 (D. crepitum) intervening single ticks. The species can be distinguished by the timing and the number of these single ticks relative to the adjacent chirps with the notable exception of D. hobsoni and D. acrotela. The calling songs of these two allopatric species are indistinguishable, an unusual feature in Australian cicadas. Two additional song variants are described, a more unstructured chirping song without intervening single ticks observed in each of the species except D. crepitum, and periodic extended buzzing echemes emitted within the calling songs (excepting the D. wallumi song).

Talcopsaltriini, a new tribe for a new genus and species of Australian cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadoidea: Cicadidae)

A new tribe, Talcopsaltriini, subfamily Cicadinae, is described to accommodate Talcopsaltria olivei, n.gen., n.sp. a species recorded from Cape York Peninsula, Queensland. Relationships of the Talcopsaltriini are discussed and comparisons made with allied tribes. A modified key to Australian tribes of the subfamily Cicadinae is provided. The terms anterior and posterior cranial depressions are introduced for two structures on the head previously unnamed. MouldS, M.S., 2008. Talcopsaltriini, a new tribe for a new genus and species of Australian cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadoidea: Cicadidae). Records of the Austalian Museum 60(3): 207–214. © The Author, 2008. Journal compilation © Australian Museum, Sydney, 2008 Records of the Australian Museum (2008) Vol. 60: 207–214. ISSN 0067-1975 doi:10.3853/j.0067-1975.60.2008.1496 A new Australian cicada from north-eastern Queensland has proved to be so different from other known species that it warrants not only a new genus but also a new tribe. Talcopsaltria olivei n.gen., n.sp. is described and placed in a new tribe Talcopsaltriini, subfamily Cicadinae. This new tribe is compared with allied tribes. The following abbreviations are used: AM, Australian Museum, Sydney; AE, collection of A. Ewart, Caloundra; JO, collection of J. Olive, Cairns; MSM, collection of M.S. Moulds, Kuranda; PH, collection of P. Hutchinson, Perth; QM, Queensland Museum, Brisbane.

Cicadapeptins I and II: New Aib-Containing Peptides from the Entomopathogenic FungusCordycepsheteropoda

Fermentation extracts of Cordyceps heteropoda (ARSEF #1880), an entomopathogenic fungus isolated from an Australian cicada, yielded a known antifungal compound, myriocin, and a complex microheterogeneous family of novel nonribosomal peptides, each containing two residues of alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (Aib). Structure elucidation of two major components of the peptide mixture, cicadapeptins I and II (1 and 2), was accomplished by amino acid analysis and various MS, 1-D NMR, and 2-D NMR experiments. Both compounds are acylated at the N-terminus by n-decanoic acid and amidated at the C-terminus by 1,2-diamino-4-methylpentane. The amino acid sequence of cicadapeptin I is N-terminus-Hyp-Hyp-Val-Aib-Gln-Aib-Leu-C-terminus. Ile substitutes for Leu in cicadapeptin II. To our knowledge, this is the first report from fungi of consecutive Hyp or Pro residues in a nonribosomal linear peptide. ROESY data indicated that the cicadapeptins adopt a helical conformation. Cicadapeptins I and II displayed antibacterial activity and limited antifungal activity.

Patterns of morphology and behaviour in a cicada guild: A neutral model analysis

AbstractMorphological and behavioural patterns were examined in a guild of nine species of eastern Australian cicadas. Co‐occurrence in, and structure of, 44 study plots were determined to relate morphological and behavioural patterns to habitat overlap and habitat structure. Multi‐variate analyses were employed to generate relationships between the species. Guild substructure shown by the habitat analyses cannot be predicted from the group substructure indicated by the morphology/behaviour analyses. Therefore, extant combinations appear to be random collections from the nine‐species pool insofar as morphology and behaviour are concerned. In particular, the most generalized species (in terms of habitat) are relatively extreme in morphology and behaviour, and vice versa. Despite these results, there are weak indications that at least two suites of characters exist, and that one of them is associated with each of the most extreme types of habitat. The reasons for these apparently contradictory results are discussed. There is no evidence to suggest that systematic morphological divergence has occurred in this guild.

An Empirical Approach to Guild Structure: Habitat Relationships in Nine Species of Eastern-Australian Cicadas

The predominance of the concept of interspecific competition in guild studies has led to a concentration on questions of limiting similarity and niche packing. To broaden the scope of interest, we have employed an empirical approach to determine the mix of strategies (e.g. generalization, specialization) in a guild of eastern Australian cicadas. Multivariate analyses of habitat ordinations were undertaken to characterize the typical habitat, and the range of habitats, occupied by each species. These data were used to produce a relationship between niche position (y) and niche breadth (3). A highly significant inverse correlation between these parameters was found. By using the y-P plane and the factor analyses, the guild was found to consist of one generalist species, one subgeneralist, two subspecialist and five specialist taxa. These results show that uniform levels of niche overlap predicted by conventional theory need not occur, but rather, a complex pattern involving both low and high overlaps often may be evident.

Mechanisms of sound-production and muscle contraction kinetics in cicadas

1. The mechanisms of sound-production are described in 7 species of Australian cicadas:Abricta curvicosta, Arunta perulata, Chlorocysta viridis, Psaltoda argentata, P. claripennis, P. harrisii andTamasa tristigma. In all these species, sound is produced by a pair of tymbals, each of which is buckled by a large muscle (Figs. 1–7). The tymbal muscles are all of the synchronous (= neurogenic) type. 2. There are great differences between species in the range of sound frequencies generated by their tymbal mechanisms and in the extent to which their songs are divided into pulses and subpulses. The most extreme case is the calling song ofChlorocysta viridis, in which there are no pulses and the sound produced is a modulated pure-tone (Fig. 3). 3. In most species the left and right tymbal muscles contract alternately and so the muscle contraction frequencies during singing are half the observed pulse repetition frequencies. InT. tristigma, the two tymbal muscles contract only a few percent out of phase in calling but in full antiphase in protest song (Fig. 7). InA. perulata, there is some evidence that the two tymbal muscles contract in synchrony during calling even though they clearly alternate in protest song. 4. Muscle contraction frequencies during calling songs vary from 56 Hz inC. viridis to 224 Hz inPsaltoda claripennis. Contraction frequencies during protest songs are somewhat lower than in calling. 5. The tymbal muscle behaves as a single motor unit in all species, giving all-or-nothing twitches with a single, sharp threshold. The durations of isometric twitches are strongly correlated with the inferred cycle period (= reciprocal of contraction frequency) in a total of eleven species with synchronous tymbal muscles (Fig. 8).

Fine structure of the sensory cilium of an insect auditory receptor.

A description is given of the sensory cilium of the auditory organ in the Australian cicada,Cyclochila australasiae (Homoptera: Cicadidae). The following regions are distinguished, each of which has a slightly different construction: distal ciliary shaft, ciliary dilatation, proximal ciliary shaft, ciliary base, distal basal body, proximal basal body and ciliary root. The sensory cilia of other insect chordotonal organs (the general class to which auditory organs belong) appear to be essentially similar. Fine structures revealed by recent studies on motile cilia are present in these cilia also.

Neuromuscular mechanism of sound production in Australian cicadas

The way in which the tymbals, the tymbal muscles and their nerves function together to produce the natural song patterns, has been studied in four species of Australian cicadas. 1. Cystosoma saundersii Westw., a most unusual cicada, has neurogenic tymbal muscles, which contract simultaneously (Figs. 2, 3a, 4a), giving a pulse repetition frequency (p.r.f.) of only 40/sec. The greatly enlarged abdomen (Kg. 9) acts as a resonant chamber at the low sound frequency (850 Hz) of the natural song. 2. Arunta perulata (Guerin) has neurogenic muscles, contracting simultaneously (Figs. 3b, 4b), giving a low p.r.f. of 65/sec. The powerful song is rendered highly directional by greatly enlarged tymbal covers (Fig. 11) which probably act also as resonant chambers. 3. Psaltoda harrisii (Leach) has neurogenic tymbal muscles, contracting simultaneously (Figs. 3c, 4c) and a high p.r.f., varying from 225–500/sec. Both the IN and the OUT clicks of the tymbal contribute to the p.r.f. but supplementary mechanisms may be required to account for the highest p.r.f. Abdominal movements contribute to the marked amplitude modulation of the natural song. 4. Abricta curvicosta (Germar) has neurogenic tymbal muscles contracting alternately (Figs. 3d, 4d). The tymbal is strongly ribbed so that during the IN movement of the tymbal each rib buckles separately to produce a pulse of sound, thus giving 7–9 sound pulses for each muscle contraction (Figs. 5d, 6d). The p.r.f. of the natural song is 1050/sec. 5. The mechanism described for the first three of these species has not been described before. The mechanism described forAbricta is similar to that of the AmericanMagicicada. There is no correlation between mechanism of sound production and taxonomic classification in cicadas. 6. It is suggested that tymbals with parallel ribs give sound pulses of regular waveform (i.e. with few harmonics) and that tymbals with ribs not parallel give sound pulses of irregular waveform (i.e. with a high harmonic content).