Abstract
The author reports about the results of a study of Porthetinae (Pamphagidae) and other Acridoidea preserved in some European museums. The taxonomy of African Porthetinae is still poorly known; some genera were established on variable characters (e.g.: the number of the flagellum segments, the shape of the hind femora or the prosternal tubercle) and collections generally hold only few specimens of this group. These insects are characterized by a remarkable sexual dimorphism, the males generally are winged while females are apterous. Because many species were described only from one sex (sometimes the female sex), there are objective difficulties to identify them correctly. The following synonymies are proposed here: Pagopedilum Karsch, 1896 = Stolliana Bolívar, 1916; Pagopedilum brevis (Walker, 1870) = Pagopedilum martini Bolívar, 1915; Cultrinotus poultoni Bolívar, 1915 = Cultrinotus luanensis Uvarov, 1953. The male of Pagopedilum bradyanum (Saussure, 1887) and adults male and female of Pagopedilum brevis (Walker, 1870) (known only from the nymph) are described. The distinction of the genera Lobosceliana Dirsh, 1958 and Xiphoceriana Dirsh, 1958 is revealed to be very difficult and they are probably synonyms, but more material should be studied. The stridulatory system found in different genera of Porthetinae is briefly described. Further, the South African Batrachotetrix cantans Saussure, 1888 (Pamphagidae: Akicerinae) is recorded for the first time in Namibia, Barombia tuberculosa sublaevis Bolívar, 1905 (Acrididae: Catantopinae) is synonymized with B. t. tuberculosa Karsch, 1891, a probable new brachypterous species of Rhachitopis (Acrididae: Euryphyminae) is reported from Angola, the Namibian Pycnodictya herero Karny, 1910 (Acrididae: Oedipodinae) is recorded for the first time from Angola, and the Tanzanian Tmetonota dispar Miller, 1929 (Acrididae: Oedipodinae) is recorded for the first time from Kenya.
References
Bolívar, I. (1916) Orthoptera. Fam. Acrididae. Subfam. Pamphaginae. Genera Insectorum, 170, 40 pp., 1 pl. [http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/105422#page/13/mode/1up]
Dirsh V.M. (1958) Revision of the group Portheti (Orthoptera: Acridoidea). Eos, Revista española de Entomología, 34, 299–400
Dirsh, V.M. (1965) The African genera of Acridoidea. Anti-Locust Research Centre by Cambridge University Press, New York. xiv + 579 pp.
Dirsh, V.M. (1970) Acridoidea of the Congo (Orthoptera). Annales du Musée royal de l’Afrique centrale, 8 (182), 1–605.
El-Hawagry, M.S., Khalil, M.W., Sharaf, M.R., Fadl, H.H., Aldawood, A.S. (2013) A preliminary study on the insect fauna of Al-Baha Province, Saudi Arabia, with descriptions of two new species. Zookeys, 274, 1–88.
Hadley, A (2008) Combine ZP. Available at www.hadleyweb.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk (downloaded on February 2009).
Haggag, A.A. (2016) First record of the genus Pycnodictya with its subspecies P. galinieri galinieri from Egypt (Orthoptera, Acrididae). ZooKeys, 630, 105–114.
https://doi.org/10.3897/ zookeys.630.10162
Hemp, C. (2013) A new Lobosceliana Dirsh species (Orthoptera: Pamphagidae: Porthetinae) from coastal Tanzania, East Africa. Zootaxa, 3731 (2), 295–300.
http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3731.2.10
Ingrisch, S. (1999) Orthopteroid Insects of Yemen. Esperiana, 7, 349–376.
Johnsen, P. (1990) A new genus and three new species of Acridoidea with notes on some lesser known species from southern Africa (Orthoptera). Natura Jutlandica, 23 (1), 1–22.
Karsch, F.A.F. (1896) Neue Orthopteren aus dem tropischen Afrika. Stettiner Entomologische Zeitung, 57, 242–359.
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/36013#page/250/mode/1up
Kirby, W.F. (1902) List of a small collection of orthopterous insects formed by Sir Harry Johnston in British East Africa and Uganda in 1899 and 1900, with descriptions of five new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1902 (1), 93–101.
[http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/98524#page/131/mode/1up]Krauss, H.A. (1879) Die orthopteren-fauna Istriens. Sitzungsberichte der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften,Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klasse, (I) 78, 451–542. [http://www.landesmuseum.at/pdf_frei_remote/SBAWW_78_0451-0544.pdf]
Massa, B. (2012) The role of the Krauss’ organ in sound production in Pamphagidae (Caelifera: Orthoptera). Italian Journal of Zoology, 79, 441–449.
Mc Kevan, D.K.M., Knipper, H. (1961) Geradflügler aus Ostafrika (Orthopteroida, Dermapteroida und Blattopteroida). Beiträge zur Entomologie, 11, 356–413.
Mertens, J.E.J., Van Roje M., Merckx J., Dekoninck, W. (2017) The use of low cost compact cameras with focus stacking functionality in entomological digitization projects. Zookeys, 712, 141–154.
Miller, N.C.E. (1929) Acrididae collected in Tanganyika Territory. Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, 77, 61–97, pls. 5-11.
Otte, D. (1995) Grasshoppers [Acridomorpha] C. Orthoptera Species File, 4, 518 pp.
Popov, G.B. (1980) The scientific results of the Oman flora and fauna survey 1977 (Dhofar). Acridoidea of eastern Arabia. Journal of Oman Studies, Special Report, 2, 113-148
Popov, G.B. (1997) Arabian grasshoppers (Orthoptera): Families Pamphagidae (Eumastacoidea) and Pyrgomorphidae (Acridoidea). Fauna of Saudi Arabia, 16, 111–168.
Rowell, C.H.F., Hemp, C., Harvey, A.W. (2015) Jago’s Grasshoppers of East and North East Africa. Vol. 1. Blurb, 238 pp.
Saussure, H. de (1888) Addimenta ad Prodromum Oedipodiorum, Insectorum ex Ordine Orthopterorum. Mémoires de la Société de Physique et d’Histoire Naturelle de Genève, 30 (1), 1–180. [http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/50100#page/71/mode/1up]
Ünal, M. (2007) Revision of the genus Glyphotmethis Bey-Bienko, 1951 (Orthoptera: Pamphagidae). Zootaxa, 1581, 1–36.
Uvarov, B.P. (1929) Contributions to a knowledge of the Fauna of South West Africa. VIII. Records and descriptions of Acrididae from South West Africa. Annals of the South African Museum, 29, 41–75.
Uvarov, B.P. (1943) The tribe Thrinchini of the subfamily Pamphaginae, and the interrelations of the Acridid subfamilies (Orthoptera). Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London, 93 (1), 1–72.
Uvarov, B.P. (1949) A remarkable new species of Pycnodicyta Saussure (Orthoptera: Acrididae) from E. Africa. Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society of London (B), 18, 151–153.
Walker, F. (1870) Catalogue of the Specimens of Dermaptera Saltatoria in the Collection of the British Museum. British Museum, 3, 425–604. [http://www.archive.org/details/catalogueofspeci03britrich]
Willemse, L.P.M. (1994) Additional records of Acridoidea (Orthoptera: Caelifera) from Zambia with the description of a new genus and two new species. Journal of African Zoology, 108 (5), 435–466.