1,721,368 research outputs found
New data and taxa for Orthoptera Tettigoniidae and Acrididae from tropical Africa.
Full text linkThe results of a long-term study on the Orthoptera collected in tropical Africa and preserved in different European
natural history museums are reported. Horatosphaga bazeletae n. sp. is described from South Africa, Dapanera falxcercata n.
sp. from Cameroon, Eurycorypha specularia n. sp. from Zambia (Tettigoniidae Phaneropterinae), and Eucoptacra popovi n.
sp. (Acrididae Coptacrinae) from the Gabon. Furthermore, the new genus Pigalua n. gen. is described for Eulioptera insularis
Ragge, 1980 from Annobón Is. (Equatorial Guinea). The new tribe Kevaniellini n. trib. is proposed for Kevaniella bipunctata
Chopard, 1954. Besides, the hitherto unknown males of Eurycorypha flavescens (Walker, 1869) and Eurycorypha klaptoczi
Karny, 1917 fromWest Africa are described. In addition, new records or unknown taxonomical characters are reported for five
species of Horatosphaga, Peronura clavigera Karsch, 1889, Prosphaga splendens Ragge, 1960, Kevaniella bipunctata
Chopard, 1954, Eurycorypha prasinata Stål, 1874, Poreuomena lamottei Chopard, 1954, Tylopsis fissa Ragge, 1964,
Catoptropteryx extensipes Karsch, 1896 and Mangomaloba latipennis Chopard, 1954 (Tettigoniidae Phaneropterinae)
Le specie nordafricane e italiane del gen. Acinipe Rambur 1838 (Orthoptera: Pamphagidae).
No full textReview of the African genera Arantia Stål and Goetia Karsch (Orthoptera. Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae).
Full text linkThe genus Arantia is reviewed, the distribution and distinguishing characters given. The three species of Goetia are assigned
as subgenus to Arantia. Arantia gestri Griffini is transferred to this new subgenus and synonymized with G. dimidiata
Bolívar. Other species synonymized are: A. accrana Karsch with A. rectifolia Brunner von Wattenwyl; A. gabunensis
Brunner von Wattenwyl with A. regina Karsch; A. mammisignum Karsch and A. tigrina Bolívar with A. excelsior Karsch;
A. ugandana Rehn is synonymized with A. fasciata (Walker). 6 species from Tropical Africa are newly described: A.
(Arantia) quinquemaculata n. sp., A. (Arantia) ivoriana n. sp., A. (Euarantia) tanzanica n. sp., A. (Euarantia) tibiaspinosa
n. sp., A. (Euarantia) bispinosa n. sp. and A. (Euarantia) griffinii n. sp. A key to the subgenera and species of Arantia
is provided. The tribe Arantiini is synonymized with Holochlorini
Endemism in Italian Orthoptera
Full text linkThe present paper discusses about the distribution of orthopterans endemic to Italy. This country is located in the centre of the Mediterranean Basin and its palaeo-geographical origins are
owed to complex natural phenomena, as well as to a multitude of centres-of-origin, where
colonization of fauna and flora concerned. Out of 382 Orthoptera taxa (i.e., species and subspecies) known to occur in Italy, 160 (41.9%) are endemic. Most of them are restricted to the
Alps, the Apennines or the two principal islands of Italy (i.e., Sardinia and Sicily). In addition,
lowland areas in central-southern Italy host many endemic taxa, which probably originate
from the Balkan Peninsula. In Italy, the following 8 genera are considered endemic:
Sardoplatycleis, Acroneuroptila, Italopodisma, Epipodisma, Nadigella, Pseudoprumna,
Chorthopodisma and Italohippus. Moreover, the subgenus Italoptila is endemic to Italy. For
research regarding endemism, Orthoptera are particularly interesting because this order comprises species characterized by different ecological traits; e.g., different dispersal abilities,
contrasting thermal requirements or specific demands on their habitats. The highest percentage
of apterous or micropterous (35.3%) and brachypterous (16.2%) endemic taxa live in the
Apennines, which are among the most isolated mountains of the Italian Peninsula. Finally,
some endemic species are endangered at the European scale
Remarks on the misunderstood use of the term biodiversity
Full text linkThe term diversity is intended to denote species richness understood as the number of species and individuals; it was explicitly discussed at length by Hutchinson in 1959 and by many other scientists in the following decades. The term biodiversity, certainly derived from diversity, was born in the 1980s. The difference between the two terms is substantial, diversity is a part of the whole, as biodiversity is understood as diversity of organisms at the level of species, individuals, genes, interactions and ecological processes among them and at the level of ecosystems. Thus, it is correct to write ‘plant diversity’ or ‘animal diversity’, but not ‘plant biodiversity’ or ‘animal biodiversity’. Biodiversity is unique, it includes all living things, it is equal to a fundamental law of life, the maintenance of adequate levels of biodiversity is a necessity for the very life of our Planet. An illustration of biodiversity seen in the form of mosaic tesserae is tentatively presente
Revision of the tropical African genus Tetraconcha (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) with the description of ten new species.
Full text linkOnly five species of the genus Tetraconcha Karsch, 1890 have been previously known; they inhabit tropical forests of central and western Africa. Generally, specimens belonging to this genus are scarcely represented in museum collections, probably due to the difficulty in finding them, but also for the fragility of their body and legs. During some recent expeditions in the Central African Republic and Ivory Coast it was possible to put together an abundant amount of specimens. This allowed the present author
to revise the genus and to find valid characters to distinguish different species. On the whole, ten new species were discovered and the total number now amounts to fifteen species. Interestingly, in the Dzanga-N’Doki National Park (Central African Republic) seven sister species, previously unknown, live together with T. smaragdina; it was possible to separate them by the shape and number of teeth of the stridulatory file under the left tegmen, and later other taxonomical characters were provided. This may be
considered a case of evolutionary radiation; that is, Tetraconcha species in the Dzanga-N’Doki National Park evolved traits that primarily linked to sound communication. This radiation very probably occurred randomly, possibly driven by genetic drift
FIGURE 7. Mimoscudderia spinicercata n in New taxa of Orthoptera (Insecta Tettigoniidae Phaneropterinae) from Madagascar
Full text linkFIGURE 7. Mimoscudderia spinicercata n. sp., male: habitus (A), lateral view of head and pronotum (B), face (C), stridulatory file (D), lateral (E) and dorsal view (F) of last abdominal segments and cerci, subgenital plate (G).Published as part of Massa, Bruno, 2017, New taxa of Orthoptera (Insecta Tettigoniidae Phaneropterinae) from Madagascar, pp. 299-312 in Zootaxa 4242 (2) on page 311, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4242.2.5, http://zenodo.org/record/37640
FIGURE 10. Terpnistriella bredoi n. gen. n in New genera, species and records of Afrotropical Phaneropterinae (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae) preserved at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Bruxelles
Full text linkFIGURE 10. Terpnistriella bredoi n. gen. n. sp. A) Lateral view of the male paratype. B) DorSal view of Stridulatory area and wingS of the male holotype. C) Stridulatory file of the holotype. D) Lateral view of hind legS of the holotype. E) Lateral view of the laSt abdominal SegmentS of the holotype. F) DorSal view of the laSt tergite and cerci of the holotype. G) DorSal view of the Subgenital plate of the holotype. H) Ventral view of the Subgenital plate of the holotype.Published as part of Massa, Bruno, 2017, New genera, species and records of Afrotropical Phaneropterinae (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae) preserved at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Bruxelles, pp. 401-429 in Zootaxa 4358 (3) on page 415, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4358.3.1, http://zenodo.org/record/106863
Supraspecific taxonomy of Palaearctic Platycleidini with unarmed prosternum: a morphological approach (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Tettigoniinae).
Full text linkAuthors analysed 33 supraspecific taxa of Palaearctic Platycleidini with unarmed prosternum, most of them hitherto considered
genera or subgenera of Platycleis and Metrioptera. For each of them they give a short description of the characters revealing
the correct classification of males and females. Then, they propose a more consistent classification, when both males and females of a supraspecific taxon are clearly distinct, they should be elevated to distinct genera. On the whole, they propose to classify Palaearctic taxa into 32 genera, for which they propose a key based on the characters used in this paper and illustrated
by 140 photographs. Additionally, they describe the following new genera: Sardoplatycleis for Platycleis galvagnii from Sardinia, Amedegnatiana for Parnassiana vicheti from Mediterranean France; and the following new species: Platycleis buzzettii
from Iran and Squamiana bressani from Uzbekistan. For each genus they list all the species known, pointing out also those
which, for scarcity of specimens, have been tentatively classified within that genus and that probably should be better assigned
to another one. Further, they synonymise Incertana with Decorana, define the actual taxonomical status of the group Roeseliana
roeselii, R. fedtschenkoi, R. azami and R. brunneri, reinstate Tessellana carinata from Balkan peninsula, establish that T.
nigrosignata is restricted only to S Italy, while in Balkan peninsula its related T. orina occurs
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