Dolichopoda dalensi
| Dolichopoda dalensi | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Orthoptera |
| Suborder: | Ensifera |
| Family: | Rhaphidophoridae |
| Genus: | Dolichopoda |
| Species: | D. dalensi |
| Binomial name | |
| Dolichopoda dalensi Boudou-Saltet, 1972 | |
Dolichopoda dalensi, the Kefalari cave cricket[2] or Kefalari cave-cricket,[1] is a species of cave cricket. First formally described in 1972, it is endemic to Greece.
Taxonomy
The species was first described from a female specimen by Boudou-Saltet in 1972. The male was not described until 2008.[3] The type locality is Kephalovrissi cave.[4]
Description
The males are between 21 and 22.5 millimeters long. They are colored yellowish-brown with a lighter underside. On the upper surfaces of the thorax and abdomen, the posterior edges are darker. On the seventh, eighth, and ninth tergites, these edges have a convex center and bend backwards. The tenth tergite has 2 lobes (the shape of which has been characterized as either "partially-square"[3] or "trapezoidal"[4]), one on each side, with meandering anterior edges. Also on the tenth tergite is a pair of pyramidal tubercles with inward-curving apexes. The legs are especially long, colored dull orange, and have slender femora.[3]
The females are 19 mm long.[3] The ovipositor is 19 mm long and is large at the base. It curves along the whole length, and has 16 denticles in the inner valves.[4]
Habitat and distribution
Dolichopoda dalensi has only been found in a cave in Argolis, Greece.[1]
Conservation
The IUCN lists Dolichopoda dalensi as vulnerable due to its tightly restricted geographic range. In the near future, the species could become critically endangered or extinct as a result of human activity. The entrances to the cave are used for various purposes, but it is unknown how this affects the population (or if it affects it at all).[1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 Willemse, L.P.M.; Hochkirch, A.; Papapavlou, K.; Kati, V.; Tzirkalli, E.; Heller, K.-G. (2016). "Dolichopoda dalensi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016 e.T17046304A70593507. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T17046304A70593507.en. Retrieved 31 May 2026.
- ↑ "Orthoptera Species File - Dolichopoda dalensi Boudou-Saltet, 1972". orthoptera.speciesfile.org. Retrieved 3 June 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 Rampini, Mauro; Russo, Claudio Di; Pavesi, Francesca; Cobolli, Marina (5 November 2008). "The genus Dolichopoda in Greece. A description of new species from the Ionian Regions and Peloponnisos (Orthoptera, Rhaphidophoridae)". Zootaxa. 1923 (1). doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1923.1.1. Retrieved 4 June 2026.
- 1 2 3 Russo, Claudio Di, Rampini, Mauro, Cobolli, Marina (2014). "The cave crickets of Greece: a contribution to the study of Southern Balkan Rhaphidophoridae diversity (Orthoptera), with the description of a new species of Troglophilus Krauss, 1879". Biodiversity Journal. 5 (3). Edizioni Danaus: 397–420. Retrieved May 31, 2026.