Pattern of Diversity and Prediction of Suitable Areas of Grasshoppers from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in China (Orthoptera: Acridoidea).

Abstract

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is recognized as a biodiversity hotspot, with a wide variety of grasshopper species, including several endemic to the region, which play significant roles in both agricultural and forestry ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to analyze the species diversity and distribution pattern of grasshoppers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. A comprehensive database comprising 390 grasshopper species was established through specimen collection, a literature review, and a geographical distribution data analysis. Diversity analysis showed that the diversity of species under the five vegetation types was relatively average. However, the alpine cold vegetation of Qinghai-Tibet and subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest still showed a relatively high Shannon index and Simpson index. Grasshopper species are mainly concentrated in the eastern and southern parts of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The richness pattern showed that grasshopper species diversity was particularly high in certain mountain areas, with Bayankala Mountain and Hengduan Mountain being endemic hotspots. The MaxEnt models were used to assess the potential habitats for four dominant genera of grasshoppers under projected climate change scenarios for 2050 and 2070. Altitude was the factor affecting the distribution of Locusta, Chorthippus, and Kingdonella, while precipitation and temperature were the factors affecting the distribution of Leuconemacris. These findings improve our understanding of the distribution patterns of different grasshopper species across various habitat types on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and provide valuable insights for developing targeted ecological protection strategies in response to environmental changes.