Phylogenetic Systematics and Evolution of the Gaudy Grasshopper Family Pyrgomorphidae (Insecta: Orthoptera)
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Date
2018-12-12
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Abstract
The family Pyrgomorphidae, also known as gaudy grasshoppers, is one of the most colorful
families of Orthoptera in the world. It is composed of 487 species in 149 genera and is
particularly diverse in the Old World. Many members of this family are economically important
pests, and some are culturally important as food for humans. Nevertheless, this family has not
been well studied from the phylogenetic perspective. The objective of this dissertation is to
modernize the systematics of Pyrgomorphidae. I provided a review of a taxonomic history of the
family and information about type depository, and created 12 illustrated regional keys covering
all the 149 Pyrgomorphidae genera of the world. Then, the first phylogenetic hypothesis for the
family based on morphology was conducted to test the monophyly of the family and subfamilies.
Regarding the origin of the New World Pyrgomorphidae, the entire mitochondrial genome and
four nuclear genes were used to test different hypotheses about its origin and I found that they
colonized South America from Africa in two waves, in ~95 and ~70 mya, and later diversified to
the Caribbean, Central and North America. Furthermore, with the most comprehensive taxon
sampling (105 out of 149 genera) and additional morphological evidence, the previous
classification scheme was tested for the first time in a phylogenetic framework. From both
morphological and molecular evidence, the family was recovered as a monophyletic group but
the subfamilies were recovered as paraphyletic. The evolution of wings was studied in a
phylogenetic framework, which showed that wing loss occurred multiple times across the family.
Regarding aposematism and chemical defense, the analysis found that different modes of
chemical defense evolved separately from each other. This dissertation represents a solid
foundation and cornerstone for the systematics of Pyrgomorphidae.
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Orthoptera, Pyrgomorphidae