Bioacoustics of Philmontis

Generic diagnosis. Mainly medium sized, but also small and few moderately large species. Pronotum prolonged, in males covering stridulatory area when at rest, in females little more than anterior margin of tegmen; lateral lobes very narrow. Prosternal spines short, rarely absent. Hind femur with spines only on anterior (external) margin and hind knee lobes with only a single spine. Male last abdominal tergite with a more or less pronounced incision from apical margin; male cerci in most species with partly excavated internal surface and often with incurved apical area; male subgenital plate terminating into a pair of long and narrow apical projections with a stylus at end; male titillators terminating into a small disc-shaped plate. Stridulatory file on underside of left male tegmen in most species with a prolonged apical area of indistinct minute teeth. Female ovipositor curved and gradually narrowing to acute tip; female subgenital plate with distinct lateral extensions at base, and with the plate terminating into a pair of long apical lobes varying from narrow with acute tip to wide with obtuse end. The differences compared to Philmontoides gen. nov. described below are already specified in introduction.

Description. Small, medium sized or moderately large species. Antennae long, reaching far behind body. Fastigium verticis conical, in anterior area slightly compressed, shorter than scapus; ventral margin separated by a shallow sinuosity from fastigium frontis. Frons shining, subsmooth, little grooved along clypeo-frontal suture, with or without few very shallowly impressed dots. Pronotum strongly prolonged behind in male, thus that the ventroposterior angle lies before middle of pronotum length; in female less prolonged; posterior margin of pronotum rounded in both sexes, in males covering stridulatory area of tegmen; pronotum surface shining, subsmooth, only in apical area and along margins little subrugose; disc slightly convex with lateral angles broadly rounded, apical area faintly raised and indistinctly shouldered, transverse sulci and secondary furrows very weak, lateral lobes longer or much longer than high, auditory swelling small. Most species fully winged but wings only little surpassing abdomen, small species often brachypterous; tegmen of fully winged species varying from almost covering abdomen to reaching beyond hind knees, gradually narrowed toward rounded tip. Prosternum provided with two moderately long, medium sized or short spines or only with tubercles, in few small species or only in some specimens of them fully missing. Mesosternal lobes rounded or angularly rounded, metasternal lobes rounded; medial plate with or without a short process or obtuse tubercle at posterior angles. Anterior tibia in cross-section quadrangular with dorsal angles rounded. Fore and mid femora with spines on both ventral margins, on hind femur only on anterior (external) margin, in few specimens with single spinules also on internal margin. Knee lobes of pro- and mesofemur spinose on both sides; on posterior side of profemur spine often short or obtuse; knee lobes of hind femur unispinose with rare individual exceptions. Male. Stridulatory file with teeth in apical area largely reduced and often indistinct; area with reasonably large teeth varies between species and is often separated by a step from apical area. Tenth abdominal tergite with apical margin angularly projecting at both sides, wide-roundly excised in middle. Epiproct oriented vertically at base, later often curved apicad. Paraprocts compressed, auricularly projecting at both sides of epiproct and sometimes even surpassing dorsal surface of epiproct; with short, obtuse apical projections. Cerci with ventro-internal margin often roundly expanded. Subgenital plate with obtuse lateral carinae; lateral areas ascending and then curved laterad again; lateral margins convex, approaching each other posteriorly; with or without long apical projections; styli small or very small. Titillators rather uniform between species; separate, central areas running parallel, basal and apical areas curved laterad; basal areas usually short and broad; apical areas flattened, in some species widened, in others as narrow as in basal area, always narrowing toward end; apex forming a small, sclerotized disc twisted in a 90° angle against preceding area. Female. Pronotum less strongly prolonged than in male, covering only bases of tegmina; lateral lobes as narrow as in male; auditory swelling distinct but without humeral sinus. Seventh abdominal tergite with lateral areas shortened or excised to provide room for extensions of baso-lateral projections of subgenital plate; rarely unmodified. Epiproct triangularly rounded. Cerci long, conical, slightly curved, apex pointing. Ovipositor moderately long, in little more than basal third stout, afterward regularly upcurved and narrowed to acute tip. Subgenital plate with dorsal expansions from sub-basal area ascending on both sides of ovipositor. Coloration. Rather uniform between species. Partly green when alive, specimens studied often discolored and yellowish brown or ochreous. Frons concolorous, antennal scrobae dark brown or with brown spots, scapus often with brown spots; vertex including fastigium verticis and dorso-posterior part of genae with or without dark elements. Pronotum with paranota blackish brown, often including light spots; disc green or yellowish brown. Tegminal pattern variable. Legs green, hind knees brown or with a brown spot at top. Anterior tibiae often with a dark spot below tympana.