Q: What is the name of the flying grasshopper I am seeing all over my open field?

Q: What is the name of the flying grasshopper I am seeing all over my open field. Whenever I walk through the wildflowers, I can see this grasshopper flying.

A: It might be the American grasshopper, Schistocerca Americana. When found in large numbers, the American grasshopper can cause serious damage to agriculture crops and landscape plantings. There are short and long wing varieties. The short winged grasshoppers do not fly as often or as far as the long winged ones.

The American grasshopper is generally tan to brown in color with specked wings. The female lay from 60 – 80 eggs which take about 3-4 weeks to hatch. Initially, they stay in small clusters until they become more mature. The nymphs, or youth stage, may start out green but will ultimately change to the brownish color.

The American grasshopper can cause injury to citrus, corn, cotton, oats, peanuts, rye, sugarcane, tobacco and vegetables. This species receives attention in Florida due its defoliation of young citrus trees. The plants are damaged by the grasshopper gnawing on the leaves, and young vegetable plants can be eaten to the ground. Most of the feeding damage is caused by the third, fourth, and fifth instar nymphs.

Aside from commercial crops, the American grasshopper also shows a preference for several species of grasses: bahiagrass, bermudagrass, crabgrass, nutgrass and woodsgrass. It also feeds on dogwood, hickory, citrus and palm trees. Best management of these and any other grasshopper is to control the weeds surrounding the plants we want to protect. Chemical controls such as insect growth regulators (IGRs) work best with the insects is very small – in the nymph stage. Of course, you can always use the Jordi method of grab, squash and stomp to control them too!! I am told they are not bad as fish bait either – full circle of life!

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Posted: June 27, 2017


Category: Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease
Tags: American Grasshopper, Schistocerca Americana


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