Distribution and ecology of Mahellus determinatus (Distant, 1917) (Hemiptera: Cicadomorpha: Cicadellidae)
2004
Attié, Marc | Bourgoin, Thierry | Fouillaud, Mireille | Reynaud, Bernard | Bonfils, Jacques
Mahellus determinatus (Cicadellidae, Coelidiinae) shows a multiregional distribution. The species previously reported from Mahe and Praslin in the Seychelles and Réunion Island, is now recorded from other Mascarene Islands (Mauritius and Flat Island) and the Seychelles (Cousine Island). A comparative study of male specimens originating from the Seychelles, Mauritius and Réunion showed no significant differences. In the Seychelles, the species is reported only on the exotic and invasive shrub Chrysobalanus icaco L. (Chrysobalanaceae); in the Mascarene Islands this leafhopper is common on a native shrub, Scaveola taccada (Gaertn.) Roxb. (Goodeniaceae). In Réunion it is also associated with an endemic shrub, Abutilon exstipulare (Cav.) G. Don (Malvaceae), an endemic vine, Cissus anulata Descoing (Vitaceae), and the native shrub, Dodonea viscosa L. (Sapindaceae). In Réunion, only the tree, Vitex trifolia L. (Verbenaceae), is reported as an exotic host-plant. This association with dicotyledonous host-plants from diverse families shows that M. determinatus is a polyphagous species. The distribution of the species in Mascarenes is restricted to the coastal dry or semi-dry and hot areas. (Résumé d'auteur)
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