Bradyporinae Burmeister, 1838

Ünal, Mustafa, 2011, Taxonomic review of the subfamily Bradyporinae (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae; Bradyporini; Ephippigerini) of Turkey, with description of new species and the relationship of the taxa, Zootaxa 2899, pp. 1-42 : 3-4

Bradyporinae Burmeister, 1838

The characteristics of the subfamily Bradyporinae have been briefly quoted from four previous authors separately. “Antennae inserted distictly below the eyes or between their lower margins, markedly nearer the clypeal suture than the top of the occiput. Elytra are always short in both sexes with well developed sound producing organs. Wings undeveloped” ( Tarbinsky, 1932); “Antennae situated below the compound eyes or at the base of them, nearer to the clypeus than to the vertex” ( Harz, 1969); “The body is bulky. The round head has small, widely spaced eyes. The antennae are inserted near or below the lower margins of the eyes (unlike almost all other -subfamilies) and generally are shorter than the body. All species are micropterous or apterous and wings are present, those of the males are reduced to the stridulatory part of the tegmina only, and those of the females are minute and concealed below the posterior part of the pronotum. In many species, both sexes have stridulatory tegminal vestiges. Members of this -sub-family are virtually all ground-living, occuring in somewhat to very dry situation. They are basically phytophagous, but will also eat animal matter (including eachother in the case of injury). Males stridulate very loudly; females respond. Defensive autohemorrhage is commen” ( Kevan, 1982); “ Bradyporinae : Most likely the most basal subfamily of katydids, it is characterized by having a large, stout body, greatly reduced wings, and the tarsus with a metatarsal pulvillus. All species of the subfamily are dark colored, often black and resemble giant crickets rather than typical, graceful katydids. Most live on the ground or low vegetation. Some species are known to produce defensive autohemorrhage and squirt their hemolymph from orfices on their body if the insect is seized by a predator. Ephippigerinae : All species have greatly reduced, scale like wings, usually hidden under an enlarged, saddle-shaped pronotum. Females of many species stridulate. Some species occasionally cause minor agricultural damage” ( Naskrecki, 2001).