Crooked feeler bugs

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Crooked feeler bugs
Alydus calcaratus

Alydus calcaratus

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Schnabelkerfe (Hemiptera)
Subordination : Bed bugs (heteroptera)
Partial order : Pentatomomorpha
Superfamily : Coreoidea
Family : Crooked feeler bugs
Scientific name
Alydidae
Amyot & Serville , 1843
a nymph of Alydus calcaratus
Dulichius inflatus
Micrelytra fossularum
Camptopus lateralis

Curly-nose bugs (Alydidae) are a family of bugs (Heteroptera) within the suborder Pentatomomorpha . Of them, more than 254 species in around 45 genera are known. In Europe 12 species are represented, of which occur in Central Europe four.

features

Curvilinear bugs are 8 to 20 millimeters long. They usually have an elongated, slender body, with a disproportionately large head (it is wider than half the length of the pronotum ) and elongated extremities. Many species, especially their nymphs, imitate the appearance of ants , but also wasps . In particular, individuals with receding wings look deceptively similar to ants, whereas those with fully developed (macropter) wings look similar to the wasps. The bugs are often dull gray-brown in color. In some species the legs ( femora ) are thickened in the males.

The very short buccules , the cheek plates delimiting the beak groove laterally, do not extend beyond the antennae in all species and are characteristic of the representatives of the crooked feeler bugs. The latter are located dorsally , above the imaginary line through the middle of the compound eyes . The first antenna segment is not constricted at the base. The point eyes ( ocelli ) are not located on sclerotized elevations. The membranes of the hemielytres have numerous wing veins . The trichobothria on the abdomen are lateral or sublateral on the fifth to seventh sternum , and submedial on the third and fourth sternum. They are either arranged in groups or scattered. The spiracles are all ventrally and spiracles are also formed on the eighth abdominal segment . In the nymphs, the odor gland openings are located on the abdomen between the fourth to sixth tergum . The spermatheca lacks the proximal flange.

A stridulation organ is formed in a number of genera . The stridulitrum is on the hemielytres, the plectrum on the rear thighs ( femora ).

Occurrence

The crooked feeler bugs are distributed worldwide, but their main distribution area is in the tropics and subtropics.

Way of life

Curvilinear bugs feed phytophagus either on the vegetative parts of the plants or on ripe or immature seeds. Alydinae mainly suckle on legumes (Fabaceae), Micrelytrinae mainly on grasses. A number of species occur as pests in agriculture. For example, Leptocorisa acuta is a major pest on rice and can also cause total crop failures by sucking on the developing rice seeds. This and another species collects in very large aggregations during the dry season. These are coordinated by pheromones, so that the bedbugs flee together in a swarm in case of danger. The ant-imitating species not only look so similar to ants that it is difficult to tell them apart from real ants in the field, they also imitate the jerky movements of ants in order to perfect their camouflage.

Taxonomy and systematics

Charles Jean Baptiste Amyot & Jean Guillaume Audinet Serville first described the group in 1843 as "Alydides". Carl Stål introduced them in 1867 with the name "Alydida" as a subfamily to the edge bugs (Coreidae). Many subsequent authors followed this view and justified this with the many wing veins on the membrane of the hemielytras and the plate-shaped ovipositor . Schaefer placed the group in 1965 as well as subsequent authors in the family rank within the superfamily Coreoidea and also raised several tribes to the rank of subfamilies. He divided the family into the subfamilies Alydinae and Micrelytrinae. Ahmad raised the Leptocorisini, still counted as a tribe to the latter subfamily by Schaefer, to the rank of a third subfamily. Many later authors followed this view, including Schuh & Slater (1995). However, Li & Zheng (1993) based the classification on the basis of two subfamilies according to Schaefer. He checked the classification again in 1999 and confirmed the division into just two subfamilies and the following tribe:

The following species occur in Europe:

Fossil finds of the family from the Oligocene - Miocene are known from all subfamilies. In addition, an extinct subfamily, the Monstrocoreinae from the Upper Jurassic, is described.

supporting documents

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Robert G. Foottit, Peter H. Adler: Insect Biodiversity: Science and Society . Wiley-Blackwell, New York 2009, ISBN 978-1-4051-5142-9 , pp. 41 .
  2. ↑ a b Alydidae. Fauna Europaea, accessed May 2, 2014 .
  3. ↑ a b Ekkehard Wachmann , Albert Melber, Jürgen Deckert: Bugs. Volume 3: Pentatomomorpha I: Aradoidea (bark bugs), Lygaeoidea (ground bugs, etc.), Pyrrhocoroidea (fire bugs) and Coreoidea (edge ​​bugs, etc.). (=  The animal world of Germany and the adjacent parts of the sea according to their characteristics and their way of life . 78th part). Goecke & Evers, Keltern 2007, ISBN 978-3-937783-29-1 , p. 197 ff .
  4. ↑ a b c d e f g Family Alydidae. Australian Biological Resources Study. Australian Faunal Directory, accessed May 2, 2014 .
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j R. T. Schuh, JA Slater: True Bugs of the World (Hemiptera: Heteroptera). Classification and Natural History. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York 1995, pp. 271ff.
  6. ^ Carl W. Schaefer: THE HIGHER CLASSIFICATION OF THE ALYDIDAE (HEMIPTERA: HETEROPTERA). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 101, 1999, pp. 94-98 (online: THE HIGHER CLASSIFICATION OF THE ALYDIDAE (HEMIPTERA: HETEROPTERA) , biostor.org).

literature

  • RT Schuh, JA Slater: True Bugs of the World (Hemiptera: Heteroptera). Classification and Natural History. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York 1995.

Web links

Commons : Crooked Feeler Bugs (Alydidae)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files