A New Species of Insect Possibly Invasive for Ornamental Plants in Romania

Abstract

Following the periodic evaluations carried out in the parks of Timisoara (Timis, Romania) which had as main activity the monitoring of harmful insect species, we noticed an interesting species with the ability to jump, which attracted our attention. It has been identified as Scudderia sp. This was not found so far in the western part of Romania or in other areas of the country (to our knowledge). So we started to study it in more detail, to monitor it and to see if there are injuries on ornamental plants. The observations were made during 2019 and 2020, in five representative parks in Timisoara. The insect was reported in two parks. Both immature forms (larvae and nymphs) and adult forms were present, starting with June. The last specimens were observed at the end of September. The population level found in the parks of Timisoara is quite high and the aesthetic damage caused to ornamental plants is clear. The plants that katydids were seen feeding on, were diverse. The most affected of these (about of 30-60%) were those of rain flower, African daisy flowers and roses.