EXTERNAL MORPHOLOGY AND ABUNDANCE OF MOUTHPART SENSILLA IN AUSTRALIAN GRYLLACRIDIDAE, STENOPELMATIDAE, AND TETTIGONIIDAE

Sensilla diversity and abundance were extremely high on the apex of the maxillary and labial palpi of two species of Gryllacrididae. The terminal segment of the maxillary palpi of these species had 9 and 15 sensilla types, respectively, and up to 2,834 sensilla. The labial palpi had 7 and 12 types, respectively, and up to 5,195 sensilla. Several types of multiporous smooth and ridged olfactory basiconic sensilla, and coeloconic, coelosphaeric, placoid, and multipapilliform sensilla occurred, as well as many trichoid sensilla and the more typical uniporous basiconic contact receptors. Two species of the closely related Stenopelmatidae were compared to the gryllacridids and found to have similar sensillar diversity and abundance, but three species of the more distantly related Tettigoniidae had only 4 or 5 sensilla types and a total number ranging from 320 to 960 on their maxillary palpi.