Pamphagulus uvarovi uvarovi

Moussi, Abdelhamid, Abba, Abderrahmane, Harrat, Abboud & Petit, Daniel, 2014, Description of Dociostaurus biskrensis sp. nov. and male allotypes of four species: Pamphagulus bodenheimeri dumonti, P. uvarovi, Sphingonotus ebneri and Notopleura pygmaea (Orthoptera: Acridoidea) in the region of Biskra, Algeria, Zootaxa 3755 (4), pp. 379-390 : 385-388

Pamphagulus uvarovi uvarovi

Male Allotype, 7/XI/09 Bir Naam, Biskra, MNHN, Paris. MNHN-EO-CAELIF997

Description. smaller size and less rough than the previous species. The general coloring is variable from whitish brown to sandy whitish and also sometimes green whitish females in autumn. The antennae are of 15 articles. The pronotum is without gibbosity, finely high. There are 10 internal spines and 10 external spines on hind tibias.

Genitalia: The study of male genitalia has demonstrated a difference between the epiphalle extracted from these two species (fig.). P. uvarovi lophi are almost straight and parallel to the ancorae whereas the lophi of P. b. dumonti are reflexed and are oblique to the ancorae. Therefore the epiphalle is considered as an important parameter to identify the species of P amphagulus.

Morphometric analysis of Pamphagulus . We used morphometric data for analysis of the main components for the two sexes of Pamphagulus . The goal was to know the contribution of each variable and if the males and females of each species could be easily defined.

The graph of the projection on the plane defined by axes F1 and F2 (fig. 4) after the analysis of the principal components of morphological data measured on males and females of Pamphagulus shows an opposition between males for both species. Indeed, the individuals of P. b. dumonti differ from other individuals of P.u. uvarovi by higher values of the total body length, width and length of femur, and pronotum length demonstrated by a discriminant analysis (AFD). However an overlap between females indicates a more difficult identification between females then between males. However, the femur width and the head length are slightly more important in P. b. dumonti than in P.u. uvarovi , and the contrary for femur length.

Biology. The Pamphagulus are generally found very close or in the shrubs of Salsola : P. bodenheimeri dumonti in S. vermiculata and S. tetragona but P. uvarovi uvarovi in S. vermiculata spread in only one biotope. At the slightest noise or disturbance, they escape by jumping on the nearest bush and hide between the branches.

Diet: Microscopic analysis of epidermal characters in Pamphagulus faeces revealed two types of the leaf epidermis remains. The most striking criterion in the distinction between these two Salsola species is the extension of the epidermal hairs, the hairs stretched out with regular branches in S. vermiculata , and the extensions of more or less long gloves in Salsola tetragona . From our analyses of the faeces, it clearly appears that the Pamphagulus only consume the plants of genus Salsola . P. uvarovi preferred feeding on S. vermiculata at 98.27% and on S. tetragona at 1.73%. On the other hand P. bodenheimeri dumonti preferred S. tetragona at 87.25% and S. vermiculata 12.75%. These results show that the 2 species of Pamphagulus are monophagous (a single genus) and has a diet adapted to the high salinity of halophytes.

Phenology: P. uvarovi is a summer-autumn grasshopper leaving in a steppe environment ( Moussi et al., 2011). The first adults are met from early July until late January. The peak is observed in September–October, indicating a single generation. A full coupling female was seen in the-mid August and another one at the end of December. The dissection of the ovaries of 7 females in December showed mature basal oocytes in their ovarioles. Dissected ovaries contained between 5 and 7 basal oocytes, yellow-orange and very elongated (5.38 mm in length and 1.35 mm in diameter). This reflects the biological activity and the predisposition to the egg-laying process. The absence of adults after this month until next July is indicating a period of embryonic or larval developmental arrest.

P. b. dumonti is a species present almost all the year-round in dry spaces in an oasis environment where prevails a halophilic vegetation dominated by two species of Salsola . There are two periods during which adults were found to have a high density, indicating the presence of two generations. The mid-year period corresponds to the end of the 1st generation and the beginning of the 2nd one ( Moussi et al., 2011). Eight females have been dissected in the month of April, but only 6 of them contained respectively 3, 4, 5, 6, 12 and12 basal oocytes in their ovarioles. When we dissected 3 females in December, they contained 5 or 6 basal oocytes. That seems to confirm the two periods of ovarian activity of this species. This species show oocytes of the same color as the previous species, but of 4.73 mm in length and 1.39 mm in diameter.

So the two Pamphagulus species are both pledged to Salsola bushes which constitute both food source and shelter. However, the two grasshopper species have a different diet specialization on Salsola leaves. Their habitat is also well separated: oasis for P. b. dumonti , allowing 2 generations a year and shorter oocytes, and steppe for P. u. uvarovi , allowing only one generation in the second half of the year but longer oocytes.