Grasshopper or Locust
Location: Saint Lucia, West Indies
May 6, 2012 7:15 pm
Dear Bugman,
I can’t figure out if this is a cricket, locust, or a grasshopper. It is about 3 in. long. It also makes a lot of chirping noises at sunset. Please help and thank you for your time!
Signature: Clueless in Castries
Katydid
Dear Clueless in Castries,
You are not that clueless. True locusts are grasshoppers and Grasshoppers belong to the order Orthoptera. This Katydid is also in the order Orthoptera. It is distinguished from a grasshopper by its much longer antennae, though it appears to be standing on its antennae rather and having them extended forward.
¶ Posted 07 May 2012 § ‡ ° carnivorous cricket ???
Location: caprock canyon stae park ,texas
April 28, 2012 10:22 pm
We were camping in caprock canyon state park in Texas for the fourth of July weekend in 2010 when we found these bugs. We were catching them and using them for bait. On the last day there we noticed one attacking a grasshoppers and eat it.
We were very shocked to see it do that and have been trying to figure out what they are ever since.
Signature: curiously, Amanda
Shieldback Katydid
Dear Amanda,
What you believe to be a Cricket is actually a Katydid. We will contact Katydid expert Piotr Naskrecki to see if he can identify the species.
Piotr Naskrecki provides an identification
Hi Daniel,
The poor katydid held by his legs and looked upon disapprovingly is Pediodectes, almost certainly P. haldemani. The short winged katydids are Dichopetala, but it is impossible to say which species from the photo (and the male is still a nymph.)
Cheers,
Piotr
Thank you Piotr. According to BugGuide, they will prey upon other insects: “Omnivorous, will eat plants, carrion, and will catch and eat smaller animals. Often come to lights at night to hunt.”
¶ Posted 29 April 2012 § ‡ ° What’s that Bug?
Location: Austin, TX
April 28, 2012 10:25 pm
Hi!
Just found your website while trying to identify this bug that I took a photograph of. While trying to take a photograph of a Cactus Rose from the Prickly Pear Cactus in Austin, Texas, I saw these two bugs that look like they are from the katydid or grasshopper family with their hinged backlegs and long antennae. Any help in identifying this would be helpful as I am going to have this photo published in a book and would love to identify the bug!
Thank you for your help!
Sincerely,
Melissa Wood
Signature: Melissa Wood
Short-Wing Katydids
Hi Melissa,
Your insects are Katydids and the individual in the center of the blossom is an immature specimen. The second individual is a female based on the presence of an ovipositor. We believe we have identified them as Short-Wing Katydids in the genus Dichopetala based on photos posted to BugGuide. We will try to verify our identification with Piotr Naskrecki, a noted expert on Katydids.
Piotr Naskrecki concurs
Hi Daniel,
The poor katydid held by his legs and looked upon disapprovingly is Pediodectes, almost certainly P. haldemani. The short winged katydids are Dichopetala, but it is impossible to say which species from the photo (and the male is still a nymph.)
Cheers,
Piotr
Hi Daniel,
I appreciate your help very much. I had no idea how many species of Katydid’s there were until I started trying to search for a picture of this one! My goodness! Thanks for taking the time to get confirmation; please let me know if you do.
Sincerely,
Melissa
¶ Posted 29 April 2012 § ‡ ° Whats this bug?
Location: Cape Tribulation, Queensland, Australia
April 9, 2012 11:58 am
Hiya!!
I saw this bug while doing an unguided night walk in Cape Tribulation in Queensland, Australia in November.
Signature: Travelbum
Longhorned Orthopteran
Dear Travelbum,
All we are able to discern from your photo is that this is a newly metamorphosed Longhorned Orthopteran in the suborder Ensifera. It is hanging from the exuvia or cast off skin it shed to become a winged adult. It might be a Katydid. See the Brisbane Insect website for some possible species.
PINK KATYDID?
Location: Costa Rica
March 21, 2012 11:37 pm
Dear Bugman,
I’m used to seeing katydids of various shapes and sizes here in Costa Rica, but they have all been some shade of green. I was taken aback when I saw this pink one on my balcony this morning. Is this a mutant? I put him on my flowers for a photo and noticed him eating the flowers which are also his color. Is this color a result of his diet? Just curious. Thanks.
Signature: Jori
Pink Katydid
Dear Jori,
Pink is not an uncommon color variation in a North American Katydid, Amblycorypha oblongifolia, which your specimen greatly resembles. Here is a photo from BugGuide and we have numerous examples in our archive.
¶ Posted 22 March 2012 § ‡ ° Leaf Mimic Katydid from Borneo
Location: Mt Kinabalu,Sabah,Malaysia
February 4, 2012 7:24 pm
Congratulations on a wonderful website. Could you or Piotr please identify this katydid? It was on a begonia leaf and about 5cm long (2.5 inches) and was found on the slopes of Mt Kinabalu in the forest during a trip we made in August 2011.It was an ornithological trip but the bugs were almost more compelling. Thanks
Signature: Mark Eller
Unknown Katydid
Dear Mark,
This Katydid is truly stunning, and the patterns and colors on its wings look gorgeous with the patterns and colors on the begonia leaf. We had no luck with our initial attempts to identify this species, and we will contact Katydid expert Piotr Naskrecki to see if he is able to assist us.
Piotr Naskrecki provides an identification
Hi Daniel,
This looks like Eulophophyllum (Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae), but probably an undesribed species. Very pretty.
Piotr
¶ Posted 05 February 2012 § ‡ ° Coneheaded Grasshopper from China
Location: Guangzhou, China
December 12, 2011 1:33 am
Hello found this little guy sunbathing on my grill behind my house. I live in Guangzhou, China. Picture was taken just two weeks ago but Southern China never really gets much cooler than about 10 degrees C.
Signature: CTSH
Conehead
Dear CTSH,
Though you correctly identified a Conehead, you are mistaken that it is a grasshopper. Your Conehead is actually one of the Katydids. Grasshoppers are distinguished from most of the other Orthopterans by their relatively short antennae. Katydids and many other Orthopterans are classified together into the suborder Ensifera, the Longhorned Orthopterans.
¶ Posted 13 December 2011 § ‡ ° Unknown(Grasshopper like)
Location: western Massachusetts in the Berkshires.
November 15, 2011 12:36 pm
Hi, i was working at a Supermarket in produce to find a bug that looks like a grasshopper, is brown, flat top and flat head, 6 legs, and the thing which gets me is it has Red pincers which are black tipped. found in the eastern United states, western Massachusetts in the Berkshires.
Signature: Justin Klahn
Conehead Katydid
Hi Justin,
From your profile shot through the container, it appears that this Katydid is a Conehead, possibly even the Broad-Tipped Conehead, Neoconocephalus triops, which is pictured on BugGuide.
Conehead Katydid
¶ Posted 20 November 2011 § ‡ ° 
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