Yoyetta fumea, Emery & Emery & Popple, 2025

Yoyetta fumea sp. nov.

( Plates 2E–F View PLATE 2 , 3E View PLATE 3 , 4C View PLATE 4 , 6 View PLATE 6 ; Figs. 1 View FIGURE 1 , 2E–F View FIGURE 2 , 10–12 View FIGURE 10 View FIGURE 11 View FIGURE 12 )

Types. Holotype 1♂, Cullala Rd , Lower Broughton, 35 o 05’46’’S 149 o 46’28’’E, 10.i.2021, N., C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-037 ) (K. 624937, AM). GoogleMaps

Paratypes. NEW SOUTH WALES: 1♂, Jacqua Rd., Windellama , 34 o 57’51’’S 149 o 54’29’’E, 10.i.2021, N., C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-027 ) GoogleMaps ; 1♀, Jerrara Rd., Bungonia , 34 o 47’13’’S 149 o 57’40’’E, 9.i.2023, C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-039 ) (K. 624938–939, AM) GoogleMaps ; 2♂, Yarrawal Rd., Windellama , NSW, 34 o 58’24’’S 149 o 55’01’’E, 4.i.2019, S. & T. Corbin, D. Emery ( EME0717-025 – 026 ; genitalia prep 717-2) GoogleMaps ; 1♂ 4♀, Jacqua Rd., Windellama , 34 o 57’51’’S 149 o 54’29’’E, 10.i.2021, N., C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-028 – 033 ) GoogleMaps ; 3♂ 1♀, same data as holotype ( EME0717-034 – 036 ; genitalia preps 717-3, 717-4) GoogleMaps ; 1♀, Jerrara Rd., Bungonia , 34 o 47’13’’S 149 o 57’40’’E, 9.i.2023, C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-042 ) ( DE) GoogleMaps ; 1♂, same location as holotype, 30.xi.2013, N. & D. Emery GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Yarrawal Rd., Windellama , NSW, 34 o 58’24’’S 149 o 55’01’’E, 4.i.2019, S. & T. Corbin, D. Emery GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Jacqua Rd, Windellama , 34 o 57’51’’S 149 o 54’29’’E, 10.i.2021, N., C. & D. Emery ( LWP) GoogleMaps ; 2♂, Jacqua Rd., Windellama , 34 o 57’51’’S 149 o 54’29’’E, 10.i.2021, N., C. & D. Emery ( EME0717-040 – 041 ) GoogleMaps ; 2♂, Jerrara Rd. 600m north of Tickner Valley Rd., Marulan , NSW, 34°47’07”S 149°57’38”E, 28.xii.2022, J. Poyitt, ( HEMC 717.001,002) ( JP) GoogleMaps .

Distribution, habitat and seasonality. Specimens of Yoyetta fumea sp. nov. are currently known only from around Windellama and Tarago in the Southern Highlands ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 ). Individuals mainly favour the trunks of black she-oaks ( Allocasuarina littoralis ), where they call while stationary or moving around the trunk at heights of 2–5 m from the ground. Around Windellama, the black and drooping she-oaks ( Allocasuarina littoralis and A. verticillata , respectively), are the main floral preferences ( Figs 2E–F View FIGURE 2 ). This is a notable difference between this species and the closely related Y. humphreyae , which is primarily associated with eucalypts. Adults have been found between November and January.

Etymology. The name “ fumea ” (Latin, adjective, feminine) reflects the prominent smoky infusion of the apical cells of the forewing, which is more pronounced in this species than in closely related Yoyetta species.

Description of adult male ( Plates 2E–F View PLATE 2 , 3E View PLATE 3 , 4C View PLATE 4 , 6 View PLATE 6 ; Fig. 10 View FIGURE 10 ).

Head slightly narrower than the lateral margins of pronotum; extensively black with orange brown fascia along posterior half of midline, between ocelli and eyes and surrounding pedicles; supra-antennal plates black in all specimens, occasionally edged dull orange-brown; ocelli pale pink to yellow; eyes dark brown; postclypeus dark orange-brown dorsally, sometimes with black infusions along the midline, anterior margin and ventral areas black, with lateral margins sometimes dark orange-brown, transverse ridges black, lorum black, gena black; anteclypeus mainly black, sometimes smudged orange-black anteriorly; rostrum reaching bases of hind coxae, brown basally becoming dark brown or black apically; antennae black.

Thorax black with irregular orange-brown marking areas, surrounding paramedian and lateral fissures; pronotal collar black, sometimes with a central orange-brown “V” with apex anterior and extending into pronotum anteriorly. Mesonotum mainly black; submedian and lateral sigilla black; scutal depressions black; cruciform elevation black with dark orange infusion with faint black transverse striations in the lateral depressions, the symmetrical orange-brown markings extending forward along anterior ridges and ending lateral to the scutal depressions; wing grooves mainly dark orange-brown and black. Metanotum black with orange-brown central section. Thorax below mainly black with variable orange markings.

Legs dark brown to black markings variable between individuals. Coxae mainly black, coxal membranes bright orange-red, trochanter black; fore femora with inner surface usually black, the outer surface predominantly dull orange-brown, femoral spines black, erect; mid and hind femora striped black on anterior sides and paler brown on posterior; fore tibiae black anteriorly, dark brown posteriorly; mid and hind tibiae dark orange-brown; tarsi orange-brown or brown suffused with black; claws dark orange-brown, becoming black at tips; meracantha black on basal half, cream over remainder, not reaching opercula.

Wings with forewing costal margin black to dark orange-brown; venation generally dark brown to orange-brown; basal cell translucent, tinged green-orange; basal membranes orange; smoky infusions throughout a1–a8; infuscations of variable intensity along crossveins r and r-m. Hind wing venation dark brown; v-shaped plagas tinged smoky-grey visible along veins 2a and 3a and within anal cells.

Opercula ( Plate 2F View PLATE 2 ), pale black basally, plates dull cream-brown, spatulate, curved medially, flexed ventrally, not meeting; approximately 1.5x larger than adjacent hind coxae.

Timbals ( Plate 2E View PLATE 2 ) with five long ribs; ribs 1–4 attached to basal spur, separated ventrally and spanning the timbal membrane, rib 5 short, unattached, occupying dorsal central half of timbal only; timbal plate with well developed, prominent elongate and elevated dome bearing a distinct point of apodeme attachment near centre.

Abdomen with tergite 1 black, posterior margins dark orange anterior to timbal cavity; tergite 2 predominantly black with dark orange spot either side of posterior midline, sometimes meeting along posterior margin; tergites 3–7 predominantly pale orange-brown each with a narrow black mark on dorsal midline, this mark being broadest on tergite 3 and narrowing slightly on each subsequent tergite posteriorly, also with a diffuse dark smudge on lateral sides resolving as a black dot on the postero-ventral aspect; tergite 8 black, tending dark orange-brown towards posterior margin, with a distinct dark orange marking on the antero-lateral aspect ( Plate 3E View PLATE 3 ); epipleurites flexed ventrally, a small black dot on the posterior margins. Sternite I black, orange-brown posteriorly; sternite II orange with dark-brown to black areas medially and laterally; sternites III–VII pale orange-brown, diffuse, with light black infusions on lateral halves; sternite VIII mainly orange-brown, dark brown at base, paler brown at apex.

Genitalia ( Fig. 10 View FIGURE 10 ) with pygofer upper lobe of moderate size, gradually tapering to a peaked but rounded apex, in ventral view projecting outwards; basal pygofer lobe small and weakly developed, broadly rounded ( Fig 10A View FIGURE 10 ); median lobe of uncus enlarged, long, in lateral view ( Fig 10B View FIGURE 10 ) almost uniformly wide along length (1.6–2 mm), evenly tapering to a rounded apex, with ratio of length from base divided by widest width around 3.0, extending distally beyond the claspers, although shorter than the distance between the dorsal beak and upper pygofer lobe; claspers robust, claw-like, partially meeting, in ventral view their bases closely applied to aedeagus, with inner margins curving laterally and their outer margins turned outwards to a blunted pointed apex; aedeagus recurved distally through 180 degrees, the vesica consistently toothed either side from the curvature, apex terminating in a short, slender ‘beak’ pointing outwards and a pair of very small flat ear-like flanges directed medially and minutely toothed; a “viking helmet” shape viewed laterally, with apex either straight or slightly downturned (<30 o dorsally) in lateral view; pseudoparameres very long, reaching the distal recurvature of the aedeagus, very slender, each with a rounded apical knob ( Fig 10C–D View FIGURE 10 ).

Description of adult female ( Plates 4C View PLATE 4 , 6C–D, F View PLATE 6 ). Head mainly similar to male, larger amounts of orange-brown areas between ocelli and eyes, a black spot on the posterio-medial margin of the eye; ocelli colour ranging from bright red to dull pink; postclypeus dark orange-brown dorsally, sometimes with black infusions along the midline, anterior margin black, ventral aspect black in most specimens, lateral margins dark orange-brown, lighter specimens with orange-brown midline, transverse ridges black, lorum black, gena black.

Thorax and legs similar to male, with coloration ranging from mainly black to principally dark orange-brown.

Wings similar to male, smoky infusions and cross-vein infuscations slightly lighter. Basal membranes either bright orange in orange-brown specimens or muddy orange in darker individuals.

Abdomen. ( Plates 4C View PLATE 4 , 7C–D). Tergite 1 orange, black laterally along posterior margin, a central black spot on darker specimens; tergite 2 orange black over anterior third, orange to dark orange-brown over remainder, black markings around lateral extremity; tergite 3 with black coloration either restricted to the anterior margin or diffusely broadened laterally, a narrow black mark on dorsal midline, wider on darker females; tergites 4–7 predominantly dark orange-brown each with a distinct black “parallelogram” on dorsal midline, broadest on each anterior margin and widest on darker specimens, most pronounced on tergites 3–5, reducing slightly in width on successive tergites 4–7, variable black smudging laterally on each tergite, culminating in a darker black marking on the posterior half of the lateral margins; tergite 8 black over anterior half, more extensively black in darker individuals, tending dark orange-brown over remainder, with a black spot on lateral aspect. Sternite I black; sternites II–VII pale orange-brown with very faint black smudging along midline; sternite VIII darker orange-brown, a black spot either side of posterior midline; abdominal segment 9 dark ochraceous over dorsal two-thirds, darker brown ventrally, dorsal beak black, in darker specimens a black line extends from the dorsal beak anteriorly for a short distance along midline, a distinct black longitudinal marking either side of dorsal midline extends laterally along the anterior margin, a small black spot laterally near the posterior apex; ovipositor sheath dark brown, black posteriorly; ovipositor dark brown, becoming black posteriorly, not extending noticeably beyond the anal styles.

Measurements (in mm; range with mean in parentheses for 12 males and 5 females, including smallest and largest specimens). Length of body including head: male, 21.3–22.4 (21.9); female, 20.7–23.3 (21.4). Length of forewing: male, 22.8–28.6 (27.0); female, 27.7–29.6 (28.3). Width of forewing: male, 8.5–9.8 (9.0); female, 8.9–9.7 (9.2). Width of head (including eyes): male, 5.5–6.2 (5.9); female, 6.3–6.8 (6.5). Width of pronotum (across lateral angles): male, 5.3–6.0 (5.7); female, 6.0–6.5 (6.3). Width of abdomen: male, 5.4–6.2 (5.9); female, 5.5–6.1 (5.9). Length of ovipositor: female, 5.5–7.5 (6.1).

Morphological variation within and between populations. Specimens of this species are consistent morphologically, likely reflecting their current limited distribution.

Morphological distinguishing features. The presence of infuscations on fore wing crossveins r and r-m is a trait that consistently distinguishes Y. fumea sp. nov. from all other described species of Yoyetta , apart from Y. psammitica sp. nov. and Y. humphreyae . Males of Y. fumea sp. nov. can be distinguished from Y. psammitica sp. nov. by having a more elongate median uncal lobe that extends posteriorly beyond the claspers (a feature that is visible without dissection). Notably, the median lobe of the uncus in Y. fumea sp. nov. is shorter than the distance between the dorsal beak and the apex of upper pygofer lobe, a feature that distinguishes it not only from Y. humphreyae , but also from other species that possess a more elongate uncus, including Y. darug sp. nov. and Y. corindi (the uncus in these three species is about as long as the distance between the dorsal beak and apex of the pygofer lobe). Females of Y. fumea sp. nov. can be distinguished from Y. psammitica sp. nov. by (1) their shorter ovipositor, which does not extend conspicuously beyond the anal styles (cf. extending <0.5 mm beyond the anal styles in Y. psammitica sp. nov.), and (2) their lack of distinct black markings along the midline of the tergites.

Calling song. ( Figs. 11–12 View FIGURE 11 View FIGURE 12 ). The male calling song of Y. fumea sp. nov. has two modes. One mode (combination mode) has a combination of buzzes and clicks. The second mode (clicking mode) comprises only clicks. Both modes can be produced when the male is stationary; however, only the clicking mode is produced in flight. Both modes can be produced for an extended duration>60 seconds.

The combination mode contains phrases that have two variants, which can be produced in an alternating fashion by the same male as Fig. 11 View FIGURE 11 illustrates.This mode and its variants are described as follows (all statistics, n =7 recordings from Windellama, Clandulla and the type locality). Each phrase begins with an echeme typically between 0.315 and 0.829 s (but can be maintained for at least 50 s duration) that increases in amplitude as it progresses, followed by a short gap (0.05 s). After this is either a repeated series of clicking and short buzzing (variant 1) or clicking (variant 2; similar to the clicking mode as shown in Fig.12 View FIGURE 12 ). Further analysis of variant 1 reveals a alternating series of short syllables (0.010 –0.014 s) and short macrosyllables (0.097 –0.147 s). This may be repeated up to 4 times before the phrase finishes with an echeme (0.154 –0.242 s). In one recording from Windellama, the phrase was extended to include an additional short gap (0.123 s) followed by an echeme (0.395 s) that increased in amplitude, then a longer gap (0.345 s), and finishing with a short echeme (0.142 s) ( Figure 11C View FIGURE 11 ). Further recordings would be required to determine how often these extended phrases are produced. For variant 2, each click is a syllable that is equivalent in structure and duration to those in variant 1; but each syllable is separated by a gap (0.205 –0.292 s). In available recordings (n= 4), males produced between 6 and 23 syllables (in succession) in variant 2.

The clicking mode consists of repeated single syllables as illustrated in Fig 12 View FIGURE 12 and are equivalent in duration to the syllables in the combination mode. A gap of varying duration (0.135 – 0.275 s) punctuates each syllable (all statistics, n =3 from the Windellama locality). When producing this mode, males fly between trees at canopy height making it difficult for acoustic recording, and especially difficult to isolate the song from other co-occurring cicada calling songs. It is hypothesized that females respond with wing-flicks following each syllable in this mode as has been recorded for other Yoyetta species.

The frequency plateau is generally consistent between modes. It ranges broadly from approximately 5.5 to 12.5 kHz, with a dominant frequency between 7 and 11 kHz.

The calling song and singing behaviour of Y. fumea sp. nov. is closest to Y. humphreyae in terms of complexity and structure. Y. fumea sp. nov. produces syllables that often contain more pulses (6–7 pulses, cf. 5–6 pulses in Y. humphreyae ). It has also been noted in the field that the singing behaviour of Y. humphreyae and Y. fumea sp. nov. differs, with the latter producing more complex alternating click and buzz variants, as described above. In comparison, although complex, the call of Y. humphreyae has a more predictable sequence as illustrated by Moulds and Popple (2021).

The song is also similar to those of Y. corindi (illustrated in Popple and Emery, 2022) and Y. psammitica sp. nov. The long buzz produced by Y. fumea sp. nov. has not been recorded in the song of Y. corindi and the two species are not known to co-occur. Y. psammitica sp. nov. produces clicks with 8–9 pulses (cf. 6–7 pulses in Y. fumea sp. nov.).