Decticoides brevipennis Ragge


Common name:	Welo Bush Cricket
Ethiopian name:	Degeza

Order:	Orthoptera
Family:	Tettigoniidae

HOSTS:
Main hosts:	Wild grasses, Meskel daisies
Alternative hosts:	Tef, Wheat, Barley

IMPORTANCE IN ETHIOPIA:
Major pest of:	Tef, Wheat
Minor pest of:	Barley

DAMAGE:
	This species feeds on the milky grains of tef and other late sown cereals.

INSECT BIOLOGY & RECOGNITION:
Nymph and adult:	Nymphs and adults look very much the same. They are brown or greenish insects with long thin antennae. The hind legs are adapted for jumping. Adults have short wings which are useless for flying. The length of the body is up to about 25 mm. Adult females have a long, curved ovipositor which is about 2 cm long. This species feeds on wild grasses and meskel daisies until they dry up in October. Then they can do serious damage to the milky grains of tef and other late sown cereals. Decticoides brevipennis. Female, length (including ovipositor) 47 mm.

Text adapted from:

INSECT PESTS OF CEREALS IN ETHIOPIA identification and control methods by Hein Bijlmakers, FAO/UNDP Project ETH/86/029 Crop Protection Phase II, Addis Ababa, October 1989