Meconema meridionale is an insect in the family Tettigoniidae, known as the southern oak bush cricket.[2]

Meconema meridionale
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Suborder: Ensifera
Family: Tettigoniidae
Subfamily: Meconematinae
Tribe: Meconematini
Genus: Meconema
Species:
M. meridionale
Binomial name
Meconema meridionale
(Costa, 1860)

It commonly measures 14 to 17 mm in length (not including antennae) and is carnivorous, arboreal and nocturnal.[3] It has a more southerly distribution than its relative, Meconema thalassinum, being found in southern France, southwestern Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, the former Yugoslavia[4] and, since 2001, the United Kingdom.[5] It is a predator of the horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella.[6]

It is considered a species of least concern on the IUCN Red List as it is "widespread and common, and the population size is very large".[1]

Close-Up of a Meconema meridionale

References

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  1. ^ a b Hochkirch, A.; Massa, B.; Zuna-Kratky, T.; Kristin, A.; Puskas, G.; Ivkovic, S.; Presa, J.J.; Skejo, J. Skejo, Monnerat, C.; Szovenyi, G.; Kleukers, R.; Chobanov, D.P.; Rutschmann, F. (2016). "Meconema meridionale". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T68427413A74540416. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T68427413A74540416.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ "Meconema meridionale (Costa, 1860) Southern Oak Bush Cricket". Orthoptera and Allied Insects. Biological Records Centre. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
  3. ^ "Species Account". Archived from the original on 2013-12-02. Retrieved 2013-11-27.
  4. ^ Karim Vahed (1996). "Prolonged copulation in oak bushcrickets (Tettigoniidae: Meconematinae: Meconema thalassinum and M. meridionale)". Journal of Orthoptera Research. 5 (5): 199–204. doi:10.2307/3503594. JSTOR 3503594.
  5. ^ "Saving Species (Srs 3) - 09 Oct 12 - Ep 6". BBC.
  6. ^ G. Grabenweger; P. Kehrli; B. Schlick-Steiner; F. Steiner; M. Stolz; S. Bacher (2005). "Predator complex of the horse chestnut leafminer Cameraria ohridella: identification and impact assessment" (PDF). Journal of Applied Entomology. 129 (7): 353–362. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0418.2005.00973.x. S2CID 84469242. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-09-02.
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