Leafhoppers in French Guiana - Mimicry

Description

At the heart of scientific research, the Musée des Confluences participates in the knowledge of human history and living organisms through the study of its collections and the research missions deployed in the field. The Science and Research collection at the Musée des Confluences aims to promote and disseminate this knowledge. Since the publication in 1931 of the monograph by Paul Vignon, a specialist in leafhoppers, the literature devoted to these fabulous insects has remained limited. After fifteen years of research on the Leaf Grasshoppers of French Guiana, Serge Xiberras and Pierre Ducaud offer a detailed study of these insects, whose mimicry reaches an unsuspected refinement that is probably unequalled among Orthoptera. The data, unpublished or enriched by the publications of other entomologists, constitute a synthesis of all the observations made by the authors - in the natural environment or on farms. This study, richly illustrated with drawings and photographs, provides answers to many questions and sheds new light on the functions linked to mimicry. Serge Xiberras and Pierre Ducaud are passionate about entomology and are interested in the in vivo observation of insects. They have been living in French Guiana for more than thirty years in a region of the Amazonian forest that is rich in biodiversity.