'/> Amazing Animals: The World's 10 Most Destructive Grasshoppers

Saturday, August 18, 2012

The World's 10 Most Destructive Grasshoppers

Grasshoppers are plant-eating creatures often regarded as pest or destructive creatures. They have been mentioned in the Bible as such and throughout history they were considered as destructive animals due to their ability to destroy large vegetation and plantations in very short period of time.

Although we have negative connotations on these small creatures they are somehow important in our ecosystem. They serve as foods to many species of birds, reptiles and amphibians.

And unknown to some, grasshoppers are important source of foods and nutrients also to humans. Grasshoppers are eaten in the Philippines, Thailand and other Asian countries.

Eastern Lubber Grasshopper

photo link

The Eastern Lubber Grasshopper (Romalea guttata) or simply Lubber Grasshopper is a brightly colored grasshopper endemic to the United States. It is not only remarkable for its unique coloration, but also for its size that can reach nearly 8 cm in length. This lovely looking grasshopper is also colloquially known as a “Graveyard Grasshopper.” When disturbed, this insect emits a dark colored and foul-smelling secretion.

Mountain Grasshopper

photo link

This pretty insect is known as Mountain Grasshopper (Monistria sp.). This particular grasshopper is photographed near Mt Feathertop in Victoria, Australia.

Red-legged Grasshopper

photo link

The Red-legged Grasshopper (Melanoplus femurrubrum) is a notable grasshopper species of Canada, Mexico, and United States. The back of this insect is reddish-brown, its belly is yellow and its hind legs are red, hence its common name.

Common Field Grasshopper

photo link

The Common Field Grasshopper (Chorthippus brunneus) is a remarkable grasshopper species that can be found in Asia, Europe and North Africa. It usually lives in dry and sparse grassland. From summer up to October, this insect is very hairy.

Differential Grasshopper

photo link

The Differential Grasshopper (Melanoplus differentialis) is a notable species of grasshopper of Canada, Mexico and United States. This insect is regarded a pest in most of its range. On the average, it can attain a length of 40 mm. It is brownish or greenish in color, but darken as it grows older.

Miramella irena

photo link

This glossy and beautiful grasshopper is a notable species of grasshopper from Croatia. This particular grasshopper was taken from Istria, Croatia.

Two-striped Grasshopper

photo link

The Two-striped Grasshopper (Melanoplus bivittatus) is a grasshopper species which is considered a pest in Canada and in the United States. It has a pair of pale yellow stripes running along the top of its body from above its eyes to the hind tip of its wings, hence its common name.

Meadow Grasshopper

photo link

The Meadow Grasshopper (Chorthippus parallelus) is a notable grasshopper species of the region between Asia and Europe. It is commonly found in non-arid grasslands and prefers moist vegetation and river valleys. The Meadow Grasshopper on the above photo is photographed in Belgium.

Parapodisma tanzawaensis

photo link

The Parapodisma tanzawaensis is a notable grasshopper species that can be found in Japan. The grasshopper on the above photo was taken at Honshu, Japan.

Plagues of the Desert Locust

photo link

This is the most popular, controversial and the most destructive grasshopper in the world!

Plagues of the Desert Locusts (Schistocerca gregaria) are considered pest in Africa, Middle East and Asia. These creatures have threatened agricultural production in these areas for hundreds of years now. These destructive and voracious insects have affected the livelihood of about 1/10 of the world’s population. This particular species is considered the most dangerous of the locust pests because of the ability of swarms to fly rapidly across great distances.

40 comments:

  1. it's always great to learn a lot of information from your blog, papaleng.I used to love catching grasshoppers when I was little, I find them very interesting creatures, their eyes looks always awesome to me :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks betchai, ako nooon hanggang dragonfly lang. Actually, mga articles ko yan submitted sa isang writing site.

      Delete
  2. Nicely done. I never thought that there are many kinds of grasshoppers. For some regions of the world people consider them as pest. In others they can be a source of food.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Salamat po uli Sir, Ako rin po akala ko ilan g soecies lang ang tipaklong, ang dami pala.

      Delete
  3. 2nd photo is indeed very pretty. i remember capturing grasshoppers was one of our hobby as a child.
    and, locusts are an exotic dish in Pampanga.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for dropping by imriz. visit ko na rin blog mo.

      Delete
  4. did you took those photos? they look amazing! it's very rare now that to see grasshoppers. i don't know.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nope the pictures are from Flickr . Thanks sa pagdalaw.

      Delete
  5. What a collection, sir! I didn't know they had so many...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Same goes with me. ang alam ko tipaklong gumamela.

      Delete
  6. I didn't know there are many kinds of grasshoppers! LOL Poor me.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I especially like that second photo. As a kid, I have always been fascinated with creepy crawlies. This post is really interesting and informative.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Salamat po. The last photo (locust), that is the worst and most destructive hoppers.

      Delete
  8. Interesting to know about these grasshoppers. I'll share this with my lil boy who'll surely be interested to see these great photos. I think I only have seen one or two of those kinds in my entire life. TFS :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm now scared of the desert locust. Is this the same as the one in the bible included in the 7 plagues.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yes, Franc, my further readings affirms it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. What I saw in the province when I was at grade school are just the green and the brown grasshopper. I thought they turned into brown when they were already old. Now I know there's so many kinds and colorfull grasshoppers =)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks for the info. This made me google if a praying mantis is related to a grasshopper and it turned out that they are different. I just remember one of the character in the Kung fu panda was a mantis, I would have nominated it on this list had it qualified as a grasshopper.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hello Sir Donald! I was just wondering.. would the kind of grasshopper that we have here in the Philippines, can be found from one of those cited above (only those seen in Asia)? Can't seem to make a clear comparison. :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hello Sir Donald! I was just wondering.. would the kind of grasshopper that we have here in the Philippines, be found from one of those cited above (only those seen in Asia)? Can't seem to make a clear comparison. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. This is really a great read. Love reading your blog papaleng. I love playing with grasshoppers, up to now my children will always tell me to stop acting like a child, I am still fond of it. Hopping and hopping... Hahahahaha...

    ReplyDelete
  16. I've only seen the green grasshopper so far... There was also a time when they infested the farm in our area...but I am not scared of them. haha.

    ReplyDelete
  17. So many kinds of grasshopper but the on that destroys the agricultural crop should be cropped too. he he he

    ReplyDelete
  18. Great new information for me. I wonder where does Mask Rider got his BlackHopper motorcycle idea from. Hahaha!

    ReplyDelete
  19. very interesting! i love seeing how they differ from each other thru their colors. Though, I never liked a grasshopper. haha!

    ReplyDelete
  20. surprisingly, i learn a lot from your site. i must admit i hate science growing up but your site is easy-read.

    the funny part is i grew up playing with grasshoppers. i'm so familiar with those of specie no 4. i even knew those with extra long legs and and the green ones that grow as long as the size of the thumb.

    i never thought of them as pest... hihihi because they mainly eat grass during those encounters. :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. ah ok... reading franc ramon's comment - those with extra long legs were praying mantis... (told you i never liked science *blush*)

    ReplyDelete
  22. You could probably start up something like a discovery channel or some sort. Ever think about doing that?

    ReplyDelete
  23. I feel pretty fortunate that we don't have invasion-level amounts of these insects in our country's farmlands. Just imagine the horror and economic effect on the entire population!

    ReplyDelete
  24. I remember how we used to play with grasshoppers when we were kids. We would take off their powerful hind legs so that they couldn't jump and fly away. This is an informative blog.

    ReplyDelete
  25. I'm not a big fan of grasshoppers but I do find this one very informative. Also, is the last one the same as what's in the Bible?

    ReplyDelete
  26. didnt know that there are lots of dangerous grasshoppers! very informative post indeed.

    ReplyDelete
  27. OUCH!! Just seeing those long spiky legs of these grasshoppers... I'm so terrified already.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I have not seen any grasshoppers for how many years.. I think we can only see these creatures where there are healthy green lands.

    ReplyDelete
  29. My gosh, the only time I'll ever eat/taste grasshopper is when I join contests like Survivor or something..

    ReplyDelete
  30. I never really liked grasshoppers--kinikilabutan ako when I see one. hehe. Although it's interesting to know that there are different kinds of grasshoppers which I never knew before.

    ReplyDelete
  31. i was once fascinated by grasshoppers... and that is in my childhood days. i guess, im challenged in capturing them and liked their color and size... but i let them loose after. Yahweh bless.

    ReplyDelete
  32. My son who is fascinated with top-ten-most-of-anything will be delighted to read this blog. Actually, he is reading it now which makes it hard to type this comment. :p

    ReplyDelete

Leave A Comments