Effects of different land-use on grasshopper diversity in lac agroecosystems

Abstract

We describe grasshopper (Acridoidea) diversity in diff erentially used lac ecosystems located in Lüchun County, Yunnan Province, China. Grasshoppers were sampled by sweep netting in 13 plots, representing four land utilization ecosystems: 1) secondary natural lac forest occurred from aff orestation of lac plantations (3 plots); 2) lac plantations (3 plots); 3) crop lands (3 plots); and 4) agricultural paddy fi elds (4 plots). A one-year sampling eff ort yielded 1,385 acridids, representing 31 species in fi ve families. Grasshopper abundance and richness were correlated to plant resources, which, in turn, correlated to land utilization. Local grasshopper assemblages were reasonable indicators of habitat diff erences, although they were not consistent with land utilization intensity. In term of grasshopper biodiversity conservation and economic development, the lac agroecosystem, which is composed by lac plantations, paddy fi elds and crop lands, most likely is the better choice for a balanced approach between conservation and development in mountainous areas of southwest China than any of the any of those areas by themselves because this combination of land use maintains the highest number of species and allows human farming activities.

Effect of anthropogenic pressure on grasshopper (Orthoptera: Acridomorpha) species diversity in three forests in southern Cameroon

“…Recently, Soliman et al (2017) also reported significant differences between grasshopper community structures in moderately and highly disturbed sites in India, using one-way analysis of similarity. We therefore assume that invertebrate communities, especially of insects, are strongly influenced by increased human activities in forest ecosystems around the world; these invertebrates are recognized worldwide as indicative of the levels of natural habitat degradation (Clayton 2002, Gebeyehu and Samways 2003, Steck et al 2007, Sirin et al 2010, Chen et al 2011).…”

“…Grasshoppers are important bioindicators of threatened environments because of their specific microhabitat preferences, functional importance in ecosystems, sensitivity to the modification of biotic and abiotic factors of their habitats, and the ease with which they can be sampled (Armstrong and van Hensbergen 1997, Samways 1997, Andersen et al 2001, Guido and Gianelle 2001, Soliman et al 2017. Diversity and community structure of grasshoppers as they relate to anthropogenic activities, types of vegetation, and climate change have been studied in many regions of the world (Otte 1976, Kemp et al 1990, Clayton 2002, Torrusio et al 2002, Gebeyehu and Samways 2003, Steck et al 2007, Saha and Haldar 2009, Sirin et al 2010, Branson 2011, Chen et al 2011, Kekeunou et al 2017. However, despite the high rate of deforestation observed, the bioindicator potential of grasshoppers in the Congo Basin area, and particularly in Cameroon, has been largely neglected.…”

Grasshopper (Orthoptera: Acridomorpha) diversity in response to fallow-land use in southern Cameroon with recommendations for land management

“…Some of the defoliator species even recycle plant matter ( Amedegnato 1977 ). Their functional importance and sensitivity to disturbance make grasshoppers potentially useful bioindicators for land management worldwide ( Joshi et al 1999 , Spungis 2007 , Latchininsky 2008 , Bazelet and Samways 2011 , Youqing-Chen et al 2011 , Borchard et al 2013 , Hao and Wang 2015 , Kuppler et al 2015 , Adu-Acheampong 2017 , Soliman et al 2017 ). Some authors have found that the richness and abundance of grasshopper species increase with land use ( Spungis 2007 , Latchininsky 2008 ) while others have stated that the diversity of these insects decreases in open environments after perturbation ( Joshi et al 1999 , Hao and Wang 2015 , Soliman et al 2017 ).…”