Integrative taxonomy confirms that Gregarina garnhamiand G. acridiorum(Apicomplexa, Gregarinidae), parasites of Schistocerca gregariaand Locusta migratoria(Insecta, Orthoptera), are distinct species

Orthoptera are infected by about 60 species of gregarines assigned to the genus GregarinaDufour, 1828. Among these species, Gregarina garnhamiCanning, 1956 from Schistocerca gregaria(Forsskål, 1775) was considered by Lipa et al. in 1996 to be synonymous with Gregarina acridiorum(Léger 1893), a parasite of several orthopteran species including Locusta migratoria(Linné, 1758). Here, a morphological study and molecular analyses of the SSU rDNA marker demonstrate that specimens of S. gregariaand specimens of L. migratoriaare infected by two distinct Gregarinaspecies, G. garnhamiand G. acridiorum,respectively. Validation of the species confirms that molecular analyses provide useful taxonomical information. Phenotypic plasticity was clearly observed in the case of G. garnhami: the morphology of its trophozoites, gamonts and syzygies varied according to the geographical location of S. gregariaand the subspecies infected.