Abstract
Orthopteran species are increasingly threatened with extinction in the wild. I review the state of orthopteran conservation in the wild, focusing on unique challenges facing these efforts. To provide a basis for discussion, I first review conservation efforts for Trimerotropis infantilis, the Zayante bandwinged grasshopper, which was the first orthopteran given official protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. I then address the principal challenges for orthopteran conservation. Successful conservation of Orthoptera in the wild will require motivation for conservation action, availability of basic biological information, and development of applied management programmes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Gaston, K.J., New, T.R. and Samways, M.J. (eds) (1993) Perspectives on Insect Conservation. Andover, UK: Intercept.
Griffin, J.R. (1964) Isolated Pinus ponderosa forests on sandy soils near Santa Cruz, California. Ecology 45, 410–412.
IUCN. (1996) 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN.
Kemp, W.P. and Dennis, B. (1991) Toward a general model of rangeland grasshopper (Orthoptera: Acrididae) phenology in the steppe region of Montana. Environ. Entomol. 20, 1504–1515.
Lockwood, J.A. and DeBrey, L.D. (1990) A solution for the sudden and unexplained extinction of the rocky mountain grasshopper (Orthoptera: Acrididae). Environ. Entomol. 19, 1194–1205.
Marangio, M.S. (1985) Preservation study: sandhills biotic communities of Santa Cruz County, California. Unpublished master's thesis, University of California, Berkeley.
Marangio, M.S. and Morgan, R. (1987) The endangered sandhills plant communities of Santa Cruz County. In Conservation and Management of Rare and Endangered Plants (T.S. Elias, ed.), pp. 267–73. Sacramento: California Native Plant Society.
Pyle, R., Bentzien, M. and Opler, P. (1981) Insect conservation. Ann. Rev. Entomol. 26, 233–58.
Rainey, R.C. (1989). Migration and Meteorology: flight behavior and the atmospheric environment of locusts and other migratory pests. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Rentz, D.C.F. and Weissman, D.B. (1981) Faunal affinities, systematics, and bionomics of the Orthoptera of the California Channel Islands. Univ. of Calif. Publ. in Entomol. 94, 1–240.
Rentz, D.C.F. and Weissman, D.B. (1984) Five new species of the bandwinged grasshopper genus Trimerotropis Stål (Orthoptera: Oedipodinae). Pan-Pacific Entomol. 60, 227–37.
Samways, M.J. (1994) Insect Conservation Biology. London: Chapman & Hall.
Samways, M.J. (1997) Conservation biology of Orthoptera. In Bionomics of Grasshoppers, Katydids and their Kin (S.K. Gangwere, M.C. Muralirangan and M. Muralirangan, eds), pp. 481–96. Wallingford, UK. CAB International.
Soulé, M. (ed.) (1987) Viable Populations for Conservation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Thomas, J.H. (1961) Flora of the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
US Fish and Wildlife Service (1997) Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; determination of endangered status for two insects from the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Fed. Reg. 62, 3509–521.
Weissman, D.B. (1984) Autecology, cytology, morphology, and crepitation notes on Trimerotropis grasshoppers (Orthoptera: Oedipodinae). Pan-Pacific Entomol. 60, 269–278.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hoekstra, J. Conserving Orthoptera in the wild: lessons from Trimerotropis infantilis (Oedipodinae). Journal of Insect Conservation 2, 179–185 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009612317241
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009612317241