Research Article |
Corresponding author: Matea Martinović ( mateamartinovic15@gmail.com ) Academic editor: Alina Avanesyan
© 2022 Matea Martinović, Sebastian Ćato, Marko Lengar, Josip Skejo.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Martinović M, Ćato S, Lengar M, Skejo J (2022) First records of three exotic giant mantid species on the Croatian coast. Journal of Orthoptera Research 31(1): 55-61. https://doi.org/10.3897/jor.31.76075
|
Some giant mantid species of the genera Sphodromantis Stål, 1871 and Hierodula Burmeister, 1838 have been found spreading their distribution through the Palearctic, but none of the species have been recorded from the Adriatic coast of Croatia, where numerous local species already co-exist, such as Mantis religiosa (Linnaeus, 1758) and Iris oratoria (Linnaeus, 1758). In this study, we present the first records of the giant African mantis (Sphodromantis viridis (Forskål, 1775)), the Indochina mantis (Hierodula patellifera Serville, 1839), and the giant Asian mantis (Hierodula tenuidentata Saussure, 1869) from Croatia. A small population of S. viridis was observed in the southernmost county of Croatia (Dubrovnik); a single record of H. patellifera comes from the westernmost part of the country (Istria), while the first two specimens of H. tenuidentata were observed in the central part of the Croatian coast (Šibenik). These alien species represent three new taxa for the mantid fauna of Croatia, which now counts 9 or 10 species (depending on inclusion of Ameles heldreichi Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1882). The fast spreading of these species in Europe proves their adaptation to regions where they have arrived; thus, future monitoring of the species must be conducted in order to determine their impact on native fauna.
alien, allochtonous, Dubrovnik, Europe, Hierodula patellifera, Hierodula tenuidentata, Istria, Mantodea, new records, Šibenik, Sphodromantis viridis, spreading
Mantids are large predatory insects, so people have been observing them from prehistory (
Until now, small Croatian Mantodea fauna consisted of seven species belonging to five genera (Ameles Burmeister, 1838, Empusa Illiger, 1798, Geomantis Pantel, 1896, Iris Saussure, 1891 and Mantis Linnaeus, 1758) (
Hierodula patellifera finding.—A single female was found in Novigrad (Istria) on a palm tree near a road edge. The specimen was photographed and uploaded to Biologer (an open platform for collecting biodiversity data) (
Hierodula tenuidentata findings.—Two adult specimens were observed and photographed in the garden center “Dubrava” in Dubrava near Šibenik.
Sphodromantis viridis findings.—In early November 2020, an adult male was attracted to the terrace light of a family home on Lapad peninsula in Dubrovnik. The specimen was collected, dry pinned, and deposited in the Dubrovnik Natural History Museum (DNHM). When preparation of the manuscript began based on this single male, the authors were convinced that the male individual represented the only record until it was decided to search the surrounding area for oothecas. Archival photos revealed sighting of a spherical ootheca from November 2019 observed on Nerium oleander L. in a camping area close to where the adult male was collected. The camping area (Fig.
Online records. —iNaturalist was searched for specimens that could represent Sphodromantis or Hierodula specimens, and a single photograph depicting a nymph unidentifiable to species level was found (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/53351490).
Identification and systematics.—The collected specimens were identified based on the morphological characteristics described in
Order Mantodea
Family Mantidae Burmeister, 1838
Composition and distribution in Croatia.—Hitherto, at least four species belonging to three genera (Ameles, Mantis, Geomantis) have been reported from the country (
Genus Ameles Burmeister, 1838
Species A. decolor (Charpentier, 1825) (Fig.
** Species A. heldreichi Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1882, could be present in the far south. Presence of A. heldreichi in the Adriatic coast is doubtful (M. Villani, pers. comm.). Shape of the eyes is unreliable diagnostic trait, so the reports of A. heldreichi from Croatia are questionable; all records should be regarded as A. decolor.
Species A. spallanzania (Rossi, 1792) (Fig.
Genus Geomantis Pantel, 1896
Species G. larvoides Pantel, 1896 (Fig.
Genus Hierodula Burmeister, 1838
Species H. patellifera Serville, 1839, newly reported for the country (Fig.
Hierodula patellifera Serville, 1839, female. A. Presence of the white-colored stigma on the tegmina; B. Lateral view, yellow spines with basal plates on the anterior coxa and dark-colored horizontal lines on the ventral part of the thorax; C. Frontal view, yellow spines with basal plates on the anterior coxa; D. Map with locality of the first Croatian record, western-most part of the Adriatic coast. Photo credit: Marko Lengar.
First record for Croatia.—1♀; Istria County: Novigrad: Dajla, residental area [45°21’05.7”N, 13°32’42.8”E], 6 m a.s.l., 21.XI.2020, obs. M. Lengar.
Species H. tenuidentata Saussure, 1869, newly reported for the country (Fig.
Hierodula tenuidentata Saussure, 1869, female. A. Dorsal view, presence of white-colored stigma on the tegmina, pronotum; B. Ventral view, yellow spines without basal plates on the anterior coxa; C. Map with locality of the first Croatian record, central part of the Adriatic coast. Photo credit: Sebastian Ćato.
First record for Croatia.—1♀ and 1♂; Šibenik-Knin County: Šibenik: Dubrava kod Šibenika, Garden center “Dubrava” [43°44’08.7”N, 15°56’46.4”E], 84 m a.s.l., 21.VIII.2021, obs. S. Ćato.
Genus Mantis Linnaeus, 1758
Species M. religiosa (Linnaeus, 1758) (Fig.
Genus Sphodromantis Stål, 1871
Species S. viridis (Forskål, 1775), newly reported for the country (Fig.
Sphodromantis viridis (Forskål, 1775), male. A. Absence of the dark-colored horizontal lines on the ventral part of the thorax; B. Pronotum; C. Presence of the white-colored stigma on the tegmina; D. Ootheca from 2019; E. Ootheca from 2021; F. Map with locality of the first Croatian record, southernmost part of the Adriatic coast; G. Camping area and habitat where small population of S. viridis was established. Photo credit: Matea Martinović.
First records for Croatia.—(1/3) ootheca (Fig.
Taxa not identified to species level.—Besides the new records identified to species level, a juvenile specimen was observed on 13th July 2020 by Dennis Aagaard in a small tourist area called Zaton near Zadar; the photo was published on iNaturalist (observation number 53351490). The nymph in the photo has its abdomen bended at an angle of 90°, which is a diagnostic character related to the juvenile stages of both S. viridis and Hierodula species. Nymphs of M. religiosa have the abdomen held parallel to the ground from the first to the last moult (
Finding a single male of an allochthonous mantid species could be overlooked, but finding two oothecas at the same place two years apart suggests that a small population of S. viridis has been established in Southern Croatia (Fig.
As in France and Italy where individuals of H. patellifera were observed mainly on trees (
There is currently no evidence of invasive behavior from these alien species. However, they have only been present for a short period, and their impact on local fauna should be determined by detailed research conducted over the span of many years. Comparative studies are needed to determine whether Hierodula and Sphodromantis represent direct competition to Mantis, Iris, or Empusa. Sphodromantis is not expected to spread much, as it prefers habitats influenced by the Mediterranean climate. Hierodula species are, however, expected to spread more, considering that H. tenuidentata is already surviving the cold Pannonian winters in Serbia (
The authors are thankful to Roberto Battiston for the useful advice and taxonomic discussions. Thanks to anonymous and non-anonymous (Mihailo Vujić) reviewers, whose comments significantly improved our manuscript. Special thanks to Radomir Jaskula and Gernot Kunz, who kindly permitted us to use their beautiful photographs. All the authors contributed equally to the study.