Eugaster spinulosa
Encyclopedia
Eugaster spinulosa is a species
of bush-cricket
from Morocco
.
It is known as the whistle cricket, because herdsmen
would dry it and pull off its legs, in order to use the cricket as a whistle
.
After mating, the male of the species cannot mate again for ten days.
Eugaster spinulosa was first described
by Carl Linnaeus in his 1763 work Centuria Insectorum
, as Gryllus spinulosus. The holotype
had been collected from the "Barbary Coast" (Morocco
) in 1756, and was in Alexander Macleay
's collection when he travelled to Sydney
in 1826. It is the oldest datest specimen in the University of Sydney
's Macleay Museum
. Its label bears the text "A curious insect from Barbary, the only one known of its kind in England. Geo Edwards, 1756".
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of bush-cricket
Tettigoniidae
The family Tettigoniidae, known in American English as katydids and in British English as bush-crickets, contains more than 6,400 species. It is part of the suborder Ensifera and the only family in the superfamily Tettigonioidea. They are also known as long-horned grasshoppers, although they are...
from Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
.
It is known as the whistle cricket, because herdsmen
Herder
A herder is a worker who lives a possibly semi-nomadic life, caring for various domestic animals, in places where these animals wander pasture lands....
would dry it and pull off its legs, in order to use the cricket as a whistle
Whistle
A whistle or call is a simple aerophone, an instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means...
.
After mating, the male of the species cannot mate again for ten days.
Eugaster spinulosa was first described
Alpha taxonomy
Alpha taxonomy is the discipline concerned with finding, describing and naming species of living or fossil organisms. This field is supported by institutions holding collections of these organisms, with relevant data, carefully curated: such institutes include natural history museums, herbaria and...
by Carl Linnaeus in his 1763 work Centuria Insectorum
Centuria Insectorum
is a 1763 taxonomic work by Carl Linnaeus, and defended as a thesis by Boas Johansson; which of the two men should be credited with its authorship has been the subject of some controversy. It includes descriptions of 102 new insect and crustacean species that had been sent to Linnaeus from...
, as Gryllus spinulosus. The holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
had been collected from the "Barbary Coast" (Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
) in 1756, and was in Alexander Macleay
Alexander Macleay
Hon. Alexander Macleay MLC FLS FRS was a leading member of the Linnean Society and a fellow of the Royal Society.Macleay was born on Ross-shire, Scotland, eldest son of William Macleay, provost of Wick...
's collection when he travelled to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 1826. It is the oldest datest specimen in the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
's Macleay Museum
Macleay Museum
The Macleay Museum in Sydney, Australia, is a natural history museum located on the main campus of the University of Sydney.- History :The building in which the museum is housed was built off Science Lane in 1887...
. Its label bears the text "A curious insect from Barbary, the only one known of its kind in England. Geo Edwards, 1756".