Subject: Large grasshopper
Location: Scone, NSW., Australia
March 16, 2014 3:01 am
Please can you tell me what this grasshopper is? I live in Australia. This is the female and is 6.4cm from head to tip of wing. It is a pale brown colour when alive with darker markings, but has gone darker and redder since freezing. They fly very fast and are difficult to catch! I have many in my suburban garden and plan to do a drawing of the specimen. It would be great if you could also give me the scientific description e.g. phylum, class, order, family and genus. Thank you.
Grasshopper
The best we are able to provide for you at this time is the taxonomy to the family level.
Phylum Arthropoda – Arthropods
Class Insecta – Insects
Order Orthoptera – Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids
Suborder Caelifera – Grasshoppers
Family Acrididae – Short-horned Grasshoppers.
Grasshopper
Grasshoppers
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I believe that this is a Spur-Throated Locust (Austracris guttulosa), or a very closely related species. Although the colour is lighter when alive (as has been said in the original message), the markings and body shape match the species almost exactly.
The taxonomy is as follows:
Phylum: Arthropoda – Arthropods
Class: Insecta – Insects
Order: Orthoptera – Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids
Suborder: Caelifera – Grasshoppers
Family: Acrididae – Short-Horned Grasshoppers
Tribe: Cyrtacanthacridini – Giant Spur-Throated Grasshoppers
Genus: Austracris
Species: A. guttulosa – Spur-Throated Locust
Thanks for your input Matthew.