# A new species of aposematic grasshopper of the genus Pseudoutanacris (Acrididae: Gomphocerinae) from the Andean cloud forest of the Ecuadorian Amazon basin

## TL;DR

A new grasshopper species, Pseudoutanacris grilla, was discovered in Ecuador's Andean cloud forests, expanding the genus's known range and providing insights into its ecology and coloration.

## Contribution

The discovery expands the genus's distribution by over 2,000 km and includes the first description of a female and DNA barcodes for the genus.

## Key findings

- Pseudoutanacris grilla sp. nov. is a new species with aposematic male coloration and cryptic female coloration.
- The species expands the genus's known range from Bolivia to Ecuador's Andean cloud forests.
- The first DNA barcodes for the genus Pseudoutanacris were generated.

## Abstract

We have identified a new grasshopper species belonging to the genus Pseudoutanacris Jago, 1971, in the montane forests of the eastern Andes in Ecuador. This discovery expands the known distribution of the genus, previously limited to a single species in the Bolivian tropics, by over 2,000 kilometers. For the first time, a female of the genus is described, and notes on the ecology and natural history of the species are presented. We also provide the first barcodes of the genus Pseudoutanacris Jago, 1971. The males of a newly described species, Pseudoutanacris grilla sp. nov. shares a striking coloration pattern with their Bolivian congener, Pseudoutanacris chromobapta Jago, 1971, setting them apart from other members of the tribe Amblytropidiini. However, the females maintain a cryptic coloration pattern, similar to that of the tribe members, and display different behavior from the males. During our study, we also observed Ps. grilla sp. nov. on the same plant as Megacheilacris graminicola (Descamps & Amédégnato, 1971) (Bactrophorinae: Romaleidae), a species with similar chromatic characteristics. This finding also marks the first formal documentation of the new geographical records of M. graminicola (Descamps & Amédégnato, 1971) in Ecuador.