Acrostira euphorbiae García et Oromí, 1992


Acrostira euphorbiae: Female (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female, head lateral (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female, head lateral (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Female, abdomen (La Palma, above El Remo, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Habitat in La Palma: Euphorbia lamarckii in the succulent belt, Tamanca, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Habitat in La Palma: Euphorbia lamarckii in the succulent belt, Tamanca, December 2012) [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Habitat directly south of the banana plantations at El Remo, December 2012. [N] Acrostira euphorbiae: Habitat in the Tamanca area in December 2012. On the coast you can see the whitish banana plantations that have been constructed at the cost of habitat. [N]

Nutrition:
The species only feeds on Euphorbia lamarckii.

Habitat:
Acrostira euphorbiae lives on xerothermic slopes between just a few meters and 600 meters above sea level. These slopes show a vegetation of the succulent belt (including Euphorbia lamarckii). Acrostira euphorbiae is only found in a small area in southwestern La Palma.

Life cycle:
Most larvae hatch one or two months after the first stronger rainfalls in autumn (see López et al). The adults can occasionally live for more than a year.

The insects can mostly be found resting at the stems and twigs below the leaves. I found adults (females) a few days before Christmas 2012 in about 400 m above sea level above El Remo.

Endangerment factors:
Acrostira euphorbiae is threatened by extinction because of reduction of the habitat area due to the following factors:

- massive construction of banana plantations on the coast in the area Puerto Naos - El Remo and that in a reserve area (Espacio Naturale Protegido de El Remo)

- planned complex of hotels and golf course in the center of the habitat

- overgrazing

- forest fires

Only a strict protection of the entire habitat could prevent extinction.

Remarks:
Acrostira euphorbiae is endemic to La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain) and is known there from only a small area in the southwest (areas of El Remo and Tamanca).
Related species occur on the neighboured islands La Gomera (Acrostira bellamyi), Tenerife (Acrostira tenerifae) and Gran Canaria (Acrostira tamarani).

Literature:
López, H., Morales, H. y De la Cruz, s. 2008b. Acrostira euphorbiae García y Oromí, 1992. Seguimiento de poblaciones de especies amenazadas. Consejería de Medio Ambiente y Ordenación Territorial. 37 pp.

López, H., Contreras-Díaz, H., Morales, E., Báez, M. y Oromí P. 2004. Distribución de Acrostira euphorbiae (Orthoptera, Pamphagidae) en La Palma (Islas Canarias). Revista de la Academia Canaria de las Ciencias 15: 43–51.



Acrostira bellamyi | Acrostira tamarani | Acrostira tenerifae