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Issue: Vol. 5760 No. 1: 20 Feb. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-02-20
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5760.1.5
Page range: 109-123
Abstract views: 48
PDF downloaded: 2

Breaking the mimicry mold: taxonomic notes on Scaphura Kirby (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) with description of two new non-mimetic species from Brazil and redescription of S. conspurcata

Departamento de Entomologia; Universidade Federal de Viçosa; Viçosa; MG; Brasil.
Departamento de Biologia Geral; Universidade Federal de Viçosa; Viçosa; MG; Brasil.
Derpartamento de Zoologia; Universidade Federal do Paraná; Curitiba; PR; Brasil.
Orthoptera Taxonomy Katydids Scaphurini Neotropics Atlantic Forest Iguaçu

Abstract

Katydids of the genus Scaphura Kirby, 1825 are known for their distinctive mimetic morphology and behavior that resembles wasps of the Pompilidae and Vespidae, supposedly providing protection against predators. They are distributed across South America, mainly in Brazil. Herein, two new species of Scaphura (Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) are described from southern Brazil: Scaphura tukurauna sp. nov. and Scaphura curitibana sp. nov. Scaphura tukurauna sp. nov., collected in Iguaçu National Park, is a medium-sized, that differs from all congeners by its uniformly dark coloration. Scaphura curitibana sp. nov., found in Curitiba, is ferruginous to orange, with darkened tegminal veins and a distinctly elongate, slightly curved ovipositor. Both species are non-mimetic, contrasting with the typical wasp-mimicking pattern of the genus. In addition to these descriptions, we redescribe the long-lost type of S. conspurcata, recently rediscovered in the Naturhistorisches Museum Wien (NMW). Together, these findings expand the known morphological diversity of Scaphura and underscore the still underestimated richness of Phaneropterinae in the Atlantic Forest of southern Brazil.

 

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How to Cite

Ladislau, J., Sperber, C. & Fianco, M. (2026) Breaking the mimicry mold: taxonomic notes on Scaphura Kirby (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) with description of two new non-mimetic species from Brazil and redescription of S. conspurcata. Zootaxa, 5760 (1), 109–123. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5760.1.5