Taxonomia e biogeografia do gênero Neotropical Aganacris Walker, 1871 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae)

Abstract

Over the last 50 years, the genus Aganacris has undergone a lot of taxonomic repositioning and, despite the published papers, very little is known about its distribution and ecological patterns. We analyzed the morphologic characters of Aganacris in order to update its taxonomy. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and morphometry, we were able to more accurately study the species inside Aganacris. As a complementary method, we used infra-red spectrum to correctly pair up males and females. In addition, we investigated the potential spatial distribution of Aganacris species to imply ecological patterns and niche overlapping. The results showed a significant morphologic differentiation between-males and -females, which, ultimately, led us to revalidate A. sphex (Rehn) and describe its female for the very first time. The models of potential distribution revealed that A. velutina (Kirby) is associated with high-altitude tropical shrublands, A. sphex (Rehn) is more likely to occur in opened areas, and A. nitida (Perty) should be adapted to more closed dense forests. Even though we did not describe any new species, we did add new characters to Grant’s 1958 descriptions and provide identification keys, for both males and females. It was strengthened the capacity of the infra-red spectrum to reproduce phenotypic (intra-specific variation) and geographic isolation patterns (inter-specific variation) of Aganacris populations. In this light, such a method is for the first time used to help solving a taxonomic problem.