''Yersinella raymondii'', common name Raymond's bush-cricket, is a species of "katydids crickets" belonging to the family
Tettigoniidae subfamily
Tettigoniinae
The Tettigoniinae are a subfamily of bush crickets or katydids, which contains hundreds of species in about twelve tribes.
Distribution
The greatest diversity is in the Palaearctic region and many of the familiar European species of bush crick ...
. The scientific name ''Yersinella'' comes from the name of the entomologist who has described the species in 1860.
Distribution
This quite common cricket is mainly present in
Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia,
France,
Italy,
Greece,
Slovenia,
Spain and
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.
Fauna Europaea
/ref>[Hochkirch, A., Massa, B., Monnerat, C., Skejo, J. Skejo, Gomboc, S., Willemse, L.P.M., Rutschmann, F., Chobanov, D.P., Kleukers, R., Kristin, A., Presa, J.J. & Szovenyi, G. 201]
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
/ref>
Habitat
These "katydids crickets" mainly inhabit forest edges, open forests and Mediterranean shrubland, at an elevation up to above sea level.[ They prefer shrubs and low herbaceous plants or soil, rather than tall grasses. As a matter of fact they live in hilly and mountainous areas, in the margins of forests and woodlands, as well in open areas with plenty of vegetation.
]
Description
''Yersinella raymondii'' is rather small species, the adults grow up to about long, while females reach a maximum of , including the relatively conspicuous, slightly and evenly bent upwards ovipositor
The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typical ...
(about ).[Orthoptera]
The basic coloration of the body usually varies from gray to chestnut to reddish brown. The females are often brighter and less contrasted than the males. On the sides of the body runs a broad, longitudinal, dark gray or dark brown band, while the top of the body is light gray-colored or light brown, with two longitudinal brown lines.[ The compound eyes are dark brown. Antennae are longer than the body. The pronotum is flattened and extended to the rear and at the lower edge of its lateral margins there are whitish or yellowish bands. In the females the wings are reduced, protruding only just below the pronotum, where as in the male they are larger, but protrude beyond the neck shield at most by half its length.][ The abdomen is long and thick. The legs are brown, have darker areas on their knees and short thin spines on the lower parts of all pairs. The cerci of the males are slightly flattened and have no inner tooth.][
Because of their small size and the barely visible wings often ''Yersinella raymondii'' is wrongly confused with a nymph of other grasshoppers, as well with '']Rhacocleis germanica
''Rhacocleis'' is a genus of bush crickets in the subfamily Tettigoniinae and tribe Platycleidini. Species can be found in southern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
Species
The Catalogue of Life lists:
*'' Rhacocleis acutangula'' Karab ...
'', but it can be easily distinguished by the mentioned flat ends of the cerci typical of males and by the clear stripe on its back, contrasting with the sides of the body.
Biology
Adults can be encountered from July through November.[ These crickets mainly feed on small invertebrates and on vegetable foods. Their nymphs are easily found in the litter. This species is a good index of the state of the forests, being quite sensitive to the environmental modifications.
]
References
* Barbara Agabiti, Ruggero Valentinotti & Cristina Salvadori - The grasshoppers (Insecta, Orthoptera) of a sub-mediterranean zone of the Trentino region (North-East Italy) - Studi Trent. Sci. Nat., Acta Biol., 82 (2005): 61-67
*Canestrelli, P. 1980. Gli Ortotteri della Riserva naturale integrale di Bosco Nordio (Venezia). Lavori - Società Veneziana di Scienze Naturali 5: 3–8.
*Heiko Bellmann: Der Kosmos Heuschreckenführer. Die Arten Mitteleuropas sicher bestimmen. Franckh-Kosmos Verlags GmbH & Co. KG, Stuttgart 2006,
*Massa, B., Fontana, P., Buzzetti, F.M., Kleukers, R. and Odé, B. 2012. Fauna d'Italia - XLVIII - Orthoptera. Calderini, Bologna.
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q50405277, from2=Q8052669
Tettigoniidae
Insects described in 1860
Orthoptera of Europe