Orthoptera Tettigonudea: India

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This is an extract from ANIMAL RESOURCES OF INDIA: Protozoa to Mammalia State of the Art. Zoological Survey of India, 1991. By Professor Mohammad Shamim Jairajpuri Director, Zoological Survey of India and his team of devoted scientists. The said book is an enlarged, updated version of The State of Art Report: Zoology Edited by Dr. T. N. Ananthakrishnan, Director, Zoological Survey of India in 1980.

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Orthoptera Tettigonudea: India

Introduction

The members of the family Tettigoniidea, popularly called long horned grasshoppers, are attractive in appearance. Tharboreal species often resemble the leaves in colour and design and the ground living forms are dull and wingless.

The following are the diagnostic characters of this family: i) Tarsi four jointed; ii) Female generally with well developed sword shaped ovipositor; iii) Fore tibiae with auditory Organs; iv) The antennae are elongated filiform structures often greatly exceeding the length of the body and composed of large number of small segments; v) Head of varied shape; and vi)Mouth parts are usually mandibulate, therefore, they are usually herbivorous.

A few species are agricultural pests., as they are commonly seen in green vegeta~ons, upto ten feet height These insects show a preference for soft leaves and tender stems of herbs and shrubs. Since such vegetations are common in moist humid tropical rain forest of plains and hills, they are distributed in moist parts• of India, leaving out arid zones. However, seasonal fluctuation report show that there are two peak seas.ons in their abundance which coincide with the vegetations and agricultuml practices. A few species are agricultural pests, hence economically important.

The difference members of the Tettigoniidae exhibit a great variety of methods of oviposition, some lay their eggs in the ground, on the twigs, the edges of leaves, rows on leaves and stems and others between the root, leaves or stems.

Historical Resume

Tettigoniid fauna is poorly known and there are less published references on Indian Tettigoniidae. Contributions were made since the time of Linnaeus (1831). Servelle Audient (1839), Walker (1869), Saossure (1892) and Brunner (1895). .

After 1900, Kirby, W:F. (1904-1910), Boliver, I. (1906), Caudel, A.N. (1908-1916), Karny, H. (1912-1913), Chopard, H. (1926), Zeuner, F.E. (1936), Bei-Bienko, G. Va (1956), Beer, M. (1957), Ragge, D.R. (1957) and Barman, R.S. (1976) have made contributions on the systematics of the group.

Estimation of Taxa

The family Tettigoniidae is very pOorly represented in India. The members of this family are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical parts of the world. It is observed that out of about 4,000 species of Tettigoniidae known from the world, only 80 species under 72 genera and 6 subfamilies are known from India. The faunal exploration of this family has not been taken up sufficiently and except for certain areas in North-Eastern India, other areas are under explored. So, there is need to collect arid study the material from other parts of India.

Studies from Different Environs

The family is distributed widely in North-Eastern part of India and in Eastern and Western Ghats of Peninsular India. Besides, they occur in Andaman .and Nicobar Islands. collections are represented mostly from North Eastern India. It becomes thus apparent that surveys are needed in other states than the North Eastern States, to assess the actual faunal composition.

Classification

The Tettigonudae is included under Order Orthoptera, Suborder Ensifera. An~r(1939) divided it into 21 subfamilies including one extinct subfamily in the world. Out of these, six subfamilies comprising 45 species under 32 genera hav~so far been recorded, mainly from the North Eastern region of India.

Expertise India

In ZSI

R. S. Barman, Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New A1ipore, Calcutta-700053.

Abroad

D. R. Ragge, Deptt. of Entomology, British "Museum (Nat. Hist.) Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5ED. (U.K.).

D. C. A. Rent, Division of Entomology, CSIR, G.pr. ,Box 1700 Canberra, Act 2601. (Australia).

Harz Kurt, Hennann Lous-Strasse 15 8031, Grobe~zellbei, Munich, (Germany). D.A. Nickle, Systematic Entomology Laboratory, USDA NHB 168 Washington, D.C. 20560 (U.S.A). Yamsaki Tsukane, Dept of Zoology, National Science Museum (Nat. Hist), Shinjuku, Tokyo 160 (Japan).

Selected References

Beir, M. 1959. Pseudophyllinae ausden Belgichom Congo (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae). Rev. %001. Bot. afro Brussels 55 : 49-68. Caudell, A. N. 1908-1916. Locustidae. Genera Insectorum 72: 48 pp. 2 pIs. 120•: 7 pp. 1 pI. 138 : 25 pp. 2pls. 140 : 10pp. Ipl. 167 : 9pp. 2pls. 168 : 13pp. Ilpls. 171 : 29 pp: 4 pIs. Kirby, W. F. 1904-1910. A systematic catalogue of Orthoptera. I : 501 PPr; n : 562 pp; m : 614 pp. London.

Karny, H. 1912-1913, Locustidae. Genera Insectorum 1~1 : 20 pp. 3 pIs. 135 : 17 pp. 2 pis. 139 : 50 pp. 7 pIs. 141 : 47 pp. 8 pIs. Zeuner, F. E. 1936. The subfamilies of Tettigoniidae (Orthoptera). Proc. R. ent. Soc.. Lond. (B) 5.