Chokwea Uvarov, 1953

Popov †, George B., Fishpool, Lincoln D. C. & Rowell, C. Hugh F., 2019, A review of the Acridinae s. str. (Orthoptera: Acridoidea: Acrididae) of eastern Africa with taxonomic changes and description of new taxa, Journal of Orthoptera Research 28 (2), pp. 37-105 : 45-46

Chokwea Uvarov, 1953 Fig. 18

Chokwea Uvarov, 1953: 153-54, figs 190, 191; 156.

Type species.

- Chokwea burri Uvarov, 1953: 154, 78, by original designation.

Description.

-As in the key to genera. Of medium size, slightly more robust and less elongate than Afrophlaeoba and Parodontomelus , with somewhat shorter and broader vertex and disc of pronotum. Arcuate transverse sulcus is always anterior to mid-point of fastigium, and often submarginal along to its front edge. Shape of pronotal disc variable in width and degree of flexure of lateral carinae but providing distinctive specific characters.

Discussion.

-The most widespread taxon in this genus group, being recorded from Angola and Botswana to D.R. Congo, Zambia, and Malawi to southwestern Tanzania. Chokwea , as originally described by Uvarov (1953), contained four new species: burri (the type species for the genus) from Angola; bredoi from Zambia; and backlundi and fitzgeraldi, both from Tanzania. The last two were removed by Jago (1983b) to his new genus Chromochokwea , but backlundi is reinstated here as a Chokwea sp. Chromochokwea Jago thus becomes a monotypic genus with fitzgeraldi as type species. Platyverticula eucteana Jago, 1983b is newly transferred to Chokwea because its phallic structures are more typical of that genus. In addition, Jago (1983b) described a new species C. malawii from the Chikangwa area of Malawi, while more recently Johnsen (1991) added another new species, C. forchhammeri , from the Serowe area of Botswana. Of the six current species of Chokwea just two, backlundi and eucteana (both from the Ufipa area of Tanzania), are recorded from eastern Africa.

The nomen dubium Chokwea testacea Otte, 1995 is not treated here.