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Toxic Milkweed Grasshopper from South Africa

Posted by bugman May 7th, 2007 at 12:00 am

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Grasshoppers

could you id this guy?
Hello,
I stumbled across your website, and thought if anyone could id this bug, it would be you guys. I took the shot from the top of Victoria Falls in Zambia in February of this year. Can anyone identify this grasshopper/cricket? It is about 6 inches long, and I found it near the top of Victoria Falls, Zambia. It really was an amazing creature, and didn’t seem to mind me getting so close for this macro.
Cheers,
Remy

Hi Remy,
We are certain this is one of the Toxic Milkweed Grasshoppers in the genus Phymateus. The frontrunner is Phymateus morbillosus and we located a photo that seems to match your specimen, but other images look different. Grasshoppers in the genus Phymateus are known as Milkweed Locusts or Gaudy Grasshoppers. Because of their diet of Milkweed, they are highly toxic.

Related Posts

  1. Milkweed Grasshopper from South Africa (January 3, 2009)
  2. Immature Toxic Milkweed Grasshopper from South Africa (January 6, 2009)
  3. More Toxic Milkweed Grasshopper Nymphs from South Africa (January 7, 2009)
  4. Toxic Milkweed Grasshopper from South Africa: Koppie Foam Grasshopper (April 20, 2009)
  5. Mating Gaudy Grasshoppers in South Africa (July 15, 2009)

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