Review of the Taxonomic Status of the Most Frequent Orthoptera Species (Caelifera: Acrididae)in the Middle Atlas of Morocco

Abstract

Located between the coast and the desert, the Moroccan Middle Atlas Mountains are strongly affected by these two climatic averages, resulting in very complex and diverse biodiversity patterns in Orthoptera fauna. This instability in locusts (Orthoptera, Acrididae), is mainly due to the ambiguity of definitions for each level of classification above the species level. These changes necessitate a review of the literature on the Moroccan Middle Atlas locust orthopterans. This review focuses on the suborder Caelifera, encountered at five stations in the Middle Atlas, and includes the three families of Acridoîdea, of which the Acrididae is the most diversified. A comparative reading of the various taxa frequently met with and their recent systematic controversies are reviewed herein.