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Grasshopper (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) Species Composition and Size Across Latitude in Atlantic Coast Salt Marshes

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Abstract

Although grasshoppers are common salt marsh herbivores, we know little about geographic variation in their species composition. We documented latitudinal variation in species composition of the tettigoniid grasshopper fauna of Atlantic Coast salt marshes. Tettigoniids (N = 740 adults) were collected from the Spartina alterniflora zone of 31 salt marsh sites across a latitudinal range of 13.19° (Florida to Maine), with an additional 52 individuals collected from the Juncus roemerianus zone of low-latitude marshes for comparative purposes. Eight species were collected, but some were common only at a few sites or rare throughout the entire collection range. The tettigoniid community was dominated by Orchelimum fidicinium at low latitudes and Conocephalus spartinae at high latitudes. Several factors might explain this shift, including changes in climate, plant phenology, and plant zonation patterns. O. fidicinium and C. spartinae increased in body size toward low latitudes. In laboratory feeding assays, O. fidicinium readily ate S. alterniflora and J. roemerianus leaves, Orchelimum concinnum, which is largely restricted to the J. roemerianus zone, ate only J. roemerianus leaves, and Conocephalus spp. ate neither, consistent with literature suggestions that they mainly consume seeds and flowers. Geographic variation in species composition and body size of grasshoppers may help explain documented patterns of geographic variation in plant palatability and plant–herbivore interactions in Atlantic Coast salt marshes. Because it can be difficult to identify tettigoniids to species, we present a guide to aid future workers in identifying the tettigoniid species common in these marshes.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Chuan-Kai Ho, Cara Gormally, and Cristiano Salgado for advice and assistance in the field; Laura Cammon for library assistance; and Thomas J. Walker for making his grasshopper specimen collection available and helping us identify grasshoppers. We thank NSF (DEB-0296160), the GCE LTER program (OCE99-82133), the National Geographic Society (5902-97), and the Baruch Marine Field Laboratory (Visiting Scientist Award to SCP) for funding. We thank Diane Wiernasz and Alfred Loeblich for constructive comments on a draft of this manuscript. ELW thanks the Honors College Office of Undergraduate Research at the University of Houston for funding (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship), and Corazon Loteyro for continuing support. This is contribution number 960 from the University of Georgia Marine Institute.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, TX, 77204-5001, USA

    Elizabeth L. Wason & Steven C. Pennings

  2. University of Michigan, 1300 Kraus Natural Science Building, 830 North University, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-1048, USA

    Elizabeth L. Wason

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  1. Elizabeth L. Wason
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  2. Steven C. Pennings
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Correspondence to Elizabeth L. Wason.

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Wason, E.L., Pennings, S.C. Grasshopper (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) Species Composition and Size Across Latitude in Atlantic Coast Salt Marshes. Estuaries and Coasts: J CERF 31, 335–343 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-007-9026-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-007-9026-3

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