Subject: Gray Bird Grasshopper
Date: 03/29/2021
Time: 4:00 PM PDT
Geographic location of the bug: Mount Washington, Los Angeles, California
Dear Gentle Readers,
For some time, Daniel has tried to educate the curious about the interconnectivity of all things on our planet, and since the pandemic, Daniel has retreated from the internet (but for work related duties like teaching online) and stopped posting to WTB? on a regular basis. During that time, Daniel has spent most of his time in the garden during lockdown, and more and more the philosophy of interconnectivity has permeated his life. The complex relationships between plants and animals in the garden is daunting. Recently while gardening, this large female Gray Bird Grasshopper was startled into flying by the hose. According to Charles Hogue in his marvelous book Insects of the Los Angeles Basin: “I have noticed adults only in the spring; they are gray or brownish in general color, and the hind wings are uniformly transparent olive-green. The light green nymphs attain noticeable size in the late summer. Both stages feed on various garden crops and ornamentals.” The adult females are easily the size of a small bird when they fly with their long legs trailing behind them. I try to relocate adults and large nymphs elsewhere in the garden when I find them on plants I value. See BugGuide for more information on the Gray Bird Grasshopper.
Female Gray Bird Grasshopper
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