2019 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 26, No. 2 N18 J.H. Lewis, D.F. McAlpine, and A.B.T. Smith Gryllus veletis (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) in New Brunswick: First detection in Maritime Canada Jake H. Lewis1,2,*, Donald F. McAlpine1, and Andrew B.T. Smith2 Abstract - We report the apparent widespread occurrence of Gryllus veletis (Alexander and Bigelow) (Spring Field Cricket) in New Brunswick, confirming this first detection in Maritime Canada on the basis of DNA barcodes. Spanning several counties, our records suggests a well-established species in New Brunswick, not the presumed adventive occurrence previously known for Atlantic Canada on the basis of a single report from the Island of Newfoundland. The Orthoptera of Maritime Canada have received increasing attention in recent years, with the result that numbers of species new to the region have been documented (Catling et al. 2013; Klymko et al., in press; Lewis and McAlpine 2018; McAlpine and Ogden 2012). Here we add yet another species that, due to its sibling status with a widespread congener, can be considered cryptic. The species is also of particular interest as one of a limited number of documented cases of allochronic speciation (Alexander and Bigelow 1960), a process of sympatric speciation due to seasonal asychrony in life-cycle (Abbot and Withgott 2004). Gryllus veletis (Alexander and Bigelow) (Spring Field Cricket; Orthoptera: Gryllidae) is large, predominantly black, and morphologically inseparable from its more commonly encountered congener G. pennsylvanicus Burmeister (Fall Field Cricket). However, unlike G. pennsylvanicus, which is active from mid-summer to fall, G. veletis is active during the spring and early summer (Alexander 1968). Overlap in the adult seasons is extremely short to nonexistent (Alexander and Meral 1967). Gryllus veletis is solitary, less numerous, and relies more on cover objects such as rocks, tufts of grass, shrubs and debris than G. pennsylvanicus (Bland 2003, Vickery and Kevan 1985). Gryllus veletis has been recorded infrequently across extreme southern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, and with greater frequency in southern Ontario, Quebec, and south from Maine to Mexico (Vickery and Kevan 1985). There is a single report for the island of Newfoundland that is believed adventive (Vickery and Kevan 1983, 1985), but otherwise this species is unknown from the Atlantic Provinces of Canada (Scudder and Vickery 2010). On 21 May 2017, the second author noted the presence of stridulating Gryllus from disturbed habitat, along railway beds, and under rock piles at several sites in Grand Bay- Westfield, Kings County, NB (45.331572ºN, 66.210914ºW; 45.331136ºN, 66.209927ºW; 45.329229ºN, 66.202676ºW). On 13 June 2017, an additional observation of calling Gryllus was made at Sutton Road, Miramchi, Northumberland County, NB (46.980701ºN, 65.551282ºW) along a railway track. As the season for G. pennsylvanicus begins in late July–August (Vickery and Kevan 1985; first calling in Grand Bay–Westfield in 2018 recorded 21 July), it was suspected that the above records were G. veletis. These observations led to further field investigations, and on 24 June 2018, three specimens of fully mature, calling Gryllus sp. were collected by the first author in Pokiok, 4.5 km south of Nackawic, along the Trans-Canada Highway 2, York County, NB (45.949681ºN, 67.249379ºW; Fig. 1). Specimens were encountered under tufts of grass, rocks, and manufactured objects 1New Brunswick Museum, 277 Douglas Avenue, Saint John, NB E2K 1E5, Canada. 2Canadian Museum of Nature, PO Box 3443, Station D, Ottawa, ON K1P 6P4, Canada. *Corresponding author - jlewis3@unb.ca. Manuscript Editor: Christopher M. Heckscher Notes of the Northeastern Naturalist, Issue 26/2, 2019 N19 2019 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 26, No. 2 J.H. Lewis, D.F. McAlpine, and A.B.T. Smith (e.g., wooden boards, plastic signs) in areas of the highway margins dominated by cobble rocks and roadside forbs and grasses. All specimens have been deposited in the New Brunswick Museum insect collection (NBM 67928, 67929). Results from DNA barcoding of the middle thoracic leg of one specimen at the Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding (University of Guelph, ON, Canada; BOLD sample ID: ABTS747; Process ID: ABTSL880-18; NBM 67929) support our tentative identification of G. veletis based on calling period. A neighborjoining analysis clustered the New Brunswick sample with 41 other specimens of G. veletis with an overall sequence difference of less than 4% within the group. The only previous report for G. veletis in Atlantic Canada is a single adventive specimen taken 8 June 1979 at Port-aux-Basque (ferry terminal), NL, Canada (Vickery and Kevan 1983). Vickery and Kevan (1983) felt it conceivable that G. veletis could become established on the island, but to date there has been no evidence of the species having an established population there. Based on G. veletis presence at Orono, ME, Vickery and Kevan (1983) speculated that the species might be present in mid-western New Brunswick. The occurrences reported herein confirm presence and suggest that G. veletis is not only widespread in New Brunswick, but also native. New Brunswick records for G. veletis support a strong association with cobble-sized rock and weed-dominated habitats. Although G. veletis in New Brunswick appears to have more specific habitat requirements than G. pennsylvanicus, and certainly appears to be less numerous, we suspect that further investigation will show this species to be even more widespread in the province. Acknowledgments. Field collection of G. veletis in New Brunswick was supported through funding provided to the New Brunswick Museum BiotaNB program from the New Brunswick Figure 1. Pokiok, 4.5 km south of Nackawic, along Trans-Canada Highway 2, York County, NB, Canada (45.949681ºN, 67.249379ºW), 24 June 2018, first New Brunswick collection site for Gryllus veletis. 2019 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 26, No. 2 N20 J.H. Lewis, D.F. McAlpine, and A.B.T. Smith Environmental Trust Fund, New Brunswick Wildlife Trust Fund, and the New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources. Literature Cited Abbott, P., and J.H. Withgott. 2004. Phylogenetic and molecular evidence for allochronic speciation in gall-forming aphids (Pemphigus). 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