Alchism

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Alchism
Alchisme grossa collection preparation from the Zoological State Collection Munich

Alchisme grossa collection preparation from the Zoological State Collection Munich

Systematics
Order : Schnabelkerfe (Hemiptera)
Subordination : Risso cicadas (Cicadomorpha)
Superfamily : Membracoidea
Family : Humpback chirps (Membracidae)
Subfamily : Centrotinae
Genre : Alchism
Scientific name
Alchism
Kirkaldy , 1904

Alchisme is a genus of humpback chirps with 34 species that are common in the Neotropics (South and Central America and Mexico). Alchisme apicalis , A. grossa and A. virescens are known from relatively many countries. The species of this genus are found mainly at higher altitudes, sometimes at an altitude of over 2,000 m.

features

Adult females are about 8 to 15 mm long, males are often slightly smaller. The chirps are mostly yellowish or greenish, sometimes brown in color. In some species, the female is yellow, while the males are brown. In some species there is a reddish or dark line on the median line of the chirp. Characteristic are a dorsal and two lateral pointed extensions of the pronotum, which are more or less directed forward. The upward extension can also be rounded. In addition, the pronotum has a point pointing backwards. The species of the genus Umbonia are closely related and similar to Alchisme , but do not have so strongly pronounced lateral tips.

Way of life

The Alchisme cicadas live on different plants, on whose phloem they feed, they are particularly common on nightshade plants. In some species, the females lay their eggs in the vascular bundles of the leaves. In A. grossa , the females sit over the eggs and largely cover them to protect them. Sometimes the females make additional incisions in the leaves to make it easier for the larvae to eat. The females stay with their offspring to protect them. The larvae form a column on the stem and the female sits nearby. If a predator or parasitoid (z. B. assassin bug or parasitoid wasp ) the larvae threatened, give this alarm by means of vibration signals they pass on to the mother. This then comes to the point from which the alarm goes off and actively defends the boys by moving their wings, making lateral body movements against the enemy or swinging their legs strongly to the side. Another protection against enemies is achieved by usually having several females clutches on the same plants even if there are enough forage plants nearby. In contrast to many other humpback chirps, the species of Alchisme are not associated with ants.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b A. J. Creao-Duarte & AM Sakakibara: Revisão de Alchisme Kirkaldy (Hemiptera, Membracidae, Membracinae, Hoplophorionini) . In: Revista Brasileira de Zoologia . tape 14 , no. 2 , 1997, p. 425 - 472 ( scielo.br [PDF]).
  2. ↑ McKamey, SH: Taxonomic Catalog of the Membracoidea (exclusive of leafhoppers). In: Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute . tape 60 , 1998, pp. 1-377 .
  3. ^ A b c Florez-VC, Wolff MI & J. Cardona-Duque: Contribution to the taxonomy of the family Membracinae Rafinesque (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha) in Colombia . In: Zootaxa . tape 3910 , 2015, p. 1-261 .
  4. ^ A b c d C. Godoy, X. Miranda & K. Nishida: Treehoppers of tropical America . Instituto national de Biodiversidad, Santo Domingo de Heredia, Costa Rica 2006, ISBN 9968-927-10-4 , pp. 352 .
  5. ↑ a b c d L. Camacho, C. Keil & O. Dangles: Factors influencing egg parasitism in sub-social insects: insights from the treehopper Alchisme grossa (Hemiptera, Auchenorrhyncha, Membracidae) . In: Ecological Entomology . 2013, p. 1-8 , doi : 10.1111 / een.12060 .

Web links

Commons : Alchisme  - collection of images, videos and audio files