ABSTRACT
Cicadas, with their acoustic signatures, are an important component of the ‘soundscape’ of ecosystems acting as good indicators of a forest health. They must get much conservation support. The present paper attempts to analyse the faunal diversity of cicadas of Buxa Tiger Reserve, a forest of Dooars in the foothills of Eastern Himalaya, West Bengal. A total of 11 species under 10 genera distributed over 2 subfamilies and 9 tribes are recorded so far from the study area. These include Platypleura sphinx Walker endemic to India, Karenia ravida Distant and Graptotettix guttatus Stål recorded first time from the country and state respectively and 81.81% of the reported species new for the district. Analysis of their zoogeographical distribution reveals that the fauna apart from being Oriental (100%) also includes Palaearctic (81.81%) and Nearctic (9.09%) elements. Cicadas and their exuviae are encountered in the forest trees mostly during premonsoon season. Structural diversity exhibited by the opercula of timbals and rostrum of the encountered species appear interesting and taxonomically important.
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