Fauna Malesiana aims to diffuse knowledge of the zoodiversity of Southeast
Asia, and to make it accessible to both expert and layman. A core activity of
the Foundation is the production of Handbooks and Field and Study Guides. Field
and Study Guides are identification guides with various possible formats, ranging
from limited monograph-type guides to a little known group, intended to raise
general awareness, to books of a more practical nature, aiding professionals
in the applied sciences. The present guide is an example of the latter type.
Several studies dealing with various pest insects in the Indo-Malayan region
have been published in the past, including Kalshovens monumental The Pests
of Crops in Indonesia. The most important pests were either described in relation
to a particular crop or to a specific geographical area. These publications
were often expensive and difficult to obtain, which formed an obstacle for those
who most needed them: people working in the agricultural sector in the region.
Our principle goal with this field guide is to make the available knowledge
about Indo-Malayan pest Orthoptera (including the lesser known species) accessible
to the people who may benefit the most from this information.
Throughout the production of this Field Guide, our imaginary audience consisted
of professionals, such as agriculturists, agricultural officers, economic entomologists,
extension workers, rural development officers, but also students of agriculture,
agronomy, general entomology, forestry, etc. We hope that this field guide will
prove to be useful, both for people who know about agricultural problems and
are interested in identifying the possible orthopteran culprits, as much as
for people who know about orthopterans and are interested in the problems they
may cause.
This guide aims to facilitate the identification of grasshoppers, locusts,
bushcrickets and crickets (Orthoptera) that are known or suspected to act as
pests in the Indo-Malayan region, and to summarize published information on
their distribution, biology, ecology, food plants and economic importance.
In principle, all species of Orthoptera are included that have been mentioned
in the literature as pest species in the Indo-Malayan region (Malaysia, Singapore,
Indonesia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea). A few species, like Chrotogonus
spp. and Tridactylus spp. on Brassica spp., the crickets Oecanthus spp. on tobacco,
Gryllus bimaculatus on coffee and sugar cane in the Philippines and Erucius
apicalis on cacao in Malaysia, have been mentioned in the literature without
any further notice. Because of this lack of information they have been excluded
here.
An illustrated key is provided for the identification of the species and species
groups treated in this guide. As far as possible, the key uses characters that
are discernable without a magnifying glass. Inevitably, in some cases characters
had to be used that require the use of a hand-lens or stereo-microscope. For
some species groups a key to the level of species is lacking since identification
would require the examination of male and female genitalia. Readers interested
in the identification of these species are referred to the specialized taxonomic
literature.
In the systematic section, families are characterized morphologically, and general
remarks on their distribution, species numbers worldwide, and biology are provided.
Information for each species (or species group) includes, as far as known, notes
on nomenclature, morphology, distribution, life cycle, ecology and behaviour,
food plants and economic importance.
Introduction/ Characteristics of Orthoptera/ Illustrated key
Species descriptions
-Suborder Caelifera
-Family Tetrigidae
-Family Pyrgomorphidae
Aularches miliaris, Desmopterella spp. , Tagasta marginella , Atractomorpha
spp.
-Family Acrididae , Subfamily Oxyinae Oxya spp.,
Caryanda diminuta , Gesonula mundata, Quilta mitrata,
-Subfamily Hemiacridinae
Spathosternum prasiniferum
-Subfamily Coptacridinae,
Apalacris varicornis, Traulia spp.
-Subfamily Catantopinae
Stenocatantops spp., Xenocatantops humilis
-Subfamily Cyrtacanthacridinae
Valanga spp. , Melicodes tenebrosa, Patanga spp., Austracris guttulosa, Cyrtacanthacris
tatarica, Chondracris rosea
-Subfamily Acridinae
Acrida spp., Phlaeoba spp., Gonista bicolor, Aiolopus thalassinus, Pternoscirta
caliginosa, Heteropternis spp., Gastrimargus marmoratus
Locusta migratoria, Trilophidia annulata,
-Suborder Ensifera
-Family Tettigoniidae
-Subfamily Phaneropterinae
Phaneroptera spp., Holochlora pygmaea , Ducetia spp., Elimaea chloris
-Subfamily Conocephalinae
Conocephalus spp., Euconocephalus varius
-Subfamily Pseudophyllinae
Chloracris prasina
Subfamily Mecopodinae
Mecopoda elongata, Sexavae , Segestidea spp., Segestes decoratus,
Sexava spp.
Family Gryllidae
Subfamily Brachytrupinae
Tarbinskiellus portentosus
Willemse, L.P.M.
2001, 160pp., 166 (16 col.) figs., hardbound
ISBN 90-5782-075-7
€ 38