Multi-colored grasshopper - Melanoplus tuberculatus

This is still tentative, until we learn more about these nymphs,

but based on where taken, M. tuberculatus seems more likely. I suspect that M. tuberculatus and M. lakinus are probably very closely related to one another. This one is younger than all the other nymphs posted under this species so far.

Moved from Lakin Grasshopper.

… David J. Ferguson, 7 November, 2012 - 2:17pm

I'm going to leave this here for now

but I have a suspicion, based on location (may even be outside the range of M. lakinus??), and on slight differences in the pattern, that this may be another species. Perhaps it is M. tuberculatus or M. plebejus. There are a couple other nymphs posted here from Texas now that have a similar pattern, and are almost certainly not M. lakinus, but they aren't identified with certainty yet either.

… David J. Ferguson, 27 October, 2011 - 10:29pm

Moved

Moved from Grasshoppers, Katydids and Crickets.

… john and jane balaban, 26 December, 2007 - 11:29am

Nymph of Acrididae.

Unfortunately, there is no way to identify most grasshopper nymphs beyond about subfamily, and I don't even know THAT on this one:-)

… Eric R. Eaton, 1 May, 2007 - 3:27pm

Melanoplus lakinus probably

Hi, This is a distinctive color pattern that shows on early instar nymphs of M. lakinus. However, I don't know nymphs of various Melanoplus well enough to know if there might be a related species with the same pattern. So, I'm not positive, but am relatively sure that this is a second instar nymph of M. lakinus. It is definitely a Melanoplus.
Compare with this:
Pfadt Fact Sheet for M. lakinus

… David J. Ferguson, 26 December, 2007 - 10:42am