Decticus loudoni

Decticus loudoni, the Apulian wart-biter, is a species of wart-biter bush cricket endemic to the south east of Italy, mainly in Apulia. It is vulnerable to extinction.

Apulian wart-biter
Conservation status
Vulnerable  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Orthoptera
Suborder:	Ensifera
Family:	Tettigoniidae
Genus:	Decticus
Species:	D. loudoni
Binomial name
Decticus loudoni Ramme, 1933
Synonyms
Locusta verrucivora Costa G., 1871 Decticus verrucivorus loudoni Götz, 1970

Distribution and habitat

The type locality of D. loudoni is Spongano, Apulia, Italy. The male holotype specimen is now held in the Museum für Naturkunde (MfN).^[2] D. loudoni is now understood to inhabit the southeastern portion of the Italian peninsula: throughout Salento (the "heel" of Italy) and further north in Foggia, both in Apulia. It is also found in the adjacent eastern fringe of Campania.^[3] They are particularly abundant in Alta Murgia National Park.^[4]

Apulian wart biters are inhabitants of hot, dry, semi-natural habitats: shrubland, grassland, pastures, and meadows stony and hilly.^[1][3][4] They are found in habitats between 70 and 250 m in elevation,^[1] while the related Decticus aprutianus is found nearby but in higher terrain, usually no lower than 1200 m.^[5] The vegetation in their typical habitat is lightly grazed grass and dispersed occasional shrubs. The wart-biters are typical of Murge plateau orthopterans.^[3]

Conservation

Decticus loudoni is considered a Vulnerable species in the IUCN red list. They are threatened by human agricultural activity.^[1]