An annotated checklist of grasshoppers (Orthoptera, Acridoidea) from Mongolia

Abstract

Grasshoppers (Acridoidea, Orthoptera) are the dominant herbivores in grassland ecosystems worldwide. They can increase rangeland productivity by stimulating plant growth and accelerating nutrient cycling. This article presents a comprehensive checklist of grasshoppers in Mongolia. Until then, the available information was very scattered, based on old studies of Mongolian grasshoppers, recorded in a few international catalogues and databases, individual records and research work on agroecosystem communities. However, the available information on the composition of the Orthopteran fauna in Mongolia was sometimes unclear or non-existent and these dubious data were excluded from the present study. In addition, the grasshopper distribution analysis used the standardised personal collection of D. Altanchimeg. We also present a list of grasshoppers, as well as their distribution and abundance, in countries adjacent to Mongolia, such as Russia, China and South Korea. The surveys covered six types of natural zones: high mountain, taiga, forest-steppe, steppe, desert steppe and desert; desert steppe and steppe zones are the most widely distributed. We hope to have contributed significantly to the study of the distribution of grasshopper species in all these natural zones. In this study, a total of three families of Acridoidea belonging to eight subfamilies, 17 tribes, 52 genera and 128 species are reported for the various natural zones. The recorded species belong to eight subfamilies: Gomphocerinae are the most numerous with 56 species recorded, followed by Oedipodinae (51 species), Thrinchinae (nine species), Melanoplinae (six species), Calliptaminae (three species), Dericorythinae, Acridinae, Egnatiinae (one species each).

Diversity and Biology of Terrestrial Orthopteroids (Insecta) in the Republic of Mordovia (Russia)

“…Such species disperse due to human "support" [9,10]. In addition, some species are important objects of ecological research, as they reflect changes taking place in ecosystems [11,12]. Thus, despite their not very significant global species diversity, representatives of Orthoptera, Dermaptera, Mantodea, and Blattodea play a significant role in human life, as well as in all ecosystems [13][14][15].…”

Barcoding Fails to Delimit Species in Mongolian Oedipodinae (Orthoptera, Acrididae)

“…The COI region of 82 individuals and 21 species was newly sequenced. A total of 10 species present in Mongolia according to Dey et al [4] and Gankhuyag et al [2] were not included in this study because of lacking material (Table 1). For Sphingonotus coerulipes and Leptopternis gracilis, sequences from individuals from Iran were used, due to lack of specimens of these species from Mongolia.…”

“…In further versions of this tree, more Gomphocerinae species were chosen as outgroup taxa; here, we only implement one taxon as outgroup, as the Gomphocerinae remained monophyletic in our tree. The sequences obtained from these online databases were those of species commonly found in Mongolia [2,4], but in some cases collected in surrounding countries.…”

“…Grasshoppers make up a large proportion of these insects, especially in terms of biomass [1]. However, there are few studies dealing with the diversity of orthopterans in the country [2]. Among the 12,000 insect species known for Mongolia [3], 128 Acridid grasshoppers and 41 Oedipodinae species have been reported [2,4].…”

“…However, there are few studies dealing with the diversity of orthopterans in the country [2]. Among the 12,000 insect species known for Mongolia [3], 128 Acridid grasshoppers and 41 Oedipodinae species have been reported [2,4]. However, the knowledge on the insect fauna, and specifically the grasshopper fauna of Mongolia, remains limited.…”