Alice Springs Fauna •
Alice Springs Orthoptera – Orthopteroids >
Pictured is Terpandrus tauwa (Northern Tropical Gumleaf Katydid). It was previously misidentified as Woodger’s Gumleaf Katydid (Terpandrus woodgeri).
The adult Northern Tropical Gumleaf Katydid body shape resemble that of a gum leaf in shape and colour. They have hind legs that are longer then both their front and mid pair of legs and if you look closely, you can see that the legs have spines.
Current documented observations include north-west Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales. The pictured Terpandrus tauwa (Northern Tropical Gumleaf Katydid) is in Alice Springs, Northern Territory.
Pictured is the female Northern Tropical Gumleaf Katydid with her obvious ovipositor (the long tubular structure used for laying eggs).
Revised to Complex Terpandrus tauwa member of Predatory Gumleaf Katydids
There is a dispute about the species ID Terpandrus woodgeri, as it could also be species Terpandrus illamurta. The two can only be reliably distinguished by the song of the male.
Source: Matthew Connors, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations/144915849
The following Terpandrus (possibly either T. woodgeri or T. illamurta) sighted in Alice Springs in Febuary 2023 (compared to the above T. tauwa from March 2022). The only way to tell T. woodgeri and T. illamurta apart is by the call of the male. T. woodgeri is very widespread but T. illamurta is only known from a very small area around Central Australia.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Subphylum: Hexapoda
- Class: Insecta
- Subclass: Pterygota
- Order: Orthoptera
- Suborder: Ensifera
- Infraorder: Tettigoniidea
- Superfamily: Tettigonioidea
- Families: Tettigoniidae
- Subfamily: Listroscelidinae
- Tribe: Terpandrini
- Genus: Terpandrus
- Species:
- Terpandrus illamurta
- Terpandrus tauwa
- Terpandrus woodgeri
Footnote & References
- Many thanks for ID to Cael David-Gallery, Facebook Australian Orthopteroids, https://www.facebook.com/groups/australian.orthopteroids/
- Many thanks to Matthew Connors for information on genus Terpandrus
- A guide to Australian Terpandrini, iNaturalist, https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/77004-a-guide-to-australian-terpandrini
- Woodger’s Gumleaf Katydid (Terpandrus woodgeri), iNaturalist, https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/602520-Terpandrus-woodgeri
- Australian Orthopteroids, Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/groups/australian.orthopteroids
- Australian Orthopteroids, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/projects/australian-orthopteroids
- Joseph Henry Woodger, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Henry_Woodger (last visited Dec. 28, 2022).
Alice Springs FaunaAlice Springs Native Bees Alice Springs Beetles Alice Springs Birds Alice Springs Gastropods (Gastropoda) Alice Springs Insects Alice Springs Marsupials Alice Springs Reptiles Alice Springs Spiders
Alice Springs FloraAlice Springs Flora Index Acacia ligulata Annual Yellowtop Apple Bush Bougainvillea Burdekin Plum Carob Tree (Ceratonia siliqa) Cattle Bush Desert Cotton (Aerva javanica) Desert Oak Eremophila Wildberry Feijoa sellowiana Flannel Cudweed Fork-leaf Corkwood Ghost Gum Golden Everlasting Kurrajong Lemon-flowered Gum MacDonnell’s Desert Fuchsia Native Bluebell Native Tomato Needlewood Olive Tree Perennial Yellow Top Rat’s Tail River Red Gum Woolly Cloak-Fern (Cheilanthes lasiophylla) Inland River Red Gum Rosy Dock Round-leaved Mallee Scurvy Grass Silky Eremophila Stemodia viscosa Striped Mintbush Sturt’s Desert Pea Sturt’s Desert Rose Tangled Leschenaultia Tar Vine Weeping Bottlebrush White Cedar Yellow Billybutton Yellow-keeled Swainsona Yellow Oleander
Alice SpringsMparntwe Alice Springs Accommodation Alice Springs Pet Friendly Accommodation Alice Springs Art & Culture Alice Springs Attractions Alice Springs Directory Alice Springs Distance Alice Springs Festival & Events Alice Springs Flora and Fauna Alice Springs Fauna Alice Springs Flora Getting Around Alice Springs Alice Springs Aboriginal Tours Alice Springs Tours Alice Springs Tours – Other
