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Strange grasshopper
Hi Bugman,
We’ve been trying to identify this strange grasshopper for almost two years but haven’t been able to, so we had high hopes when we found your web site a couple of weeks ago. We can tell you that we saw it in southern Spain. It was about 2" long and if it hadn’t moved we would never have spotted it. There doesn’t seem to be anything like it in your albums I know that you’re getting hundreds of requests at this time of year, so I just hope I’m one of the lucky ones that you have time to identify !
Steve

Hi Steve,
We know that you have requested this identification several times. The quality of the image is not ideal and it does not have a high enough resolution to see important identification features. We tried a search of Spanish insects but without luck. Perhaps one of our readers will recognize your well camouflaged specimen.

Identification
(07/26/2007) Courtesy of Julian Donahue
Hi Daniel, … BTW, farther down on WTB, the “Unknown Spanish Grasshopper” is in the family Acrididae, either subfamily Truxalinae or Acridinae, both of which are very similar in appearance and both occur in the southern Palearctic (e.g., Spain). They are separated by presence or absence of a stridulatory mechanism: Truxalinae the stridulatory mechanism is a serrated ridge on the inner side of the hind femur and sharp convex radial and medial veins of the tegmen (e.g., leathery forewing). Members of the subfamily Acridinae have no stridulatory mechanism. Attached is a diagram of of the truxaline stridulatory serration on internal side of the hind femur (note scale!). From Fig. 69, p. 151, from Dirsh, V.M. 1975. Classification of the Acridomorphoid Insects. E.W. Classey Ltd.
Julian

Update: (08/31/2008)
Unknown Spanish Grasshopper: subfamily Truxalinae or Acridinae (07/24/2007)
Reply |Reply to all |Forward |Print |Delete |Show original Greetings,
This whacky looking creature appears to be a Mediterranean Slant-faced Grasshopper Acrida ungarica. I saw a couple in Spain last week – including one that swam across the swimming pool before being rescued! Hope this helps,
John Oates
UK

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