Species Melanoplus bivittatus - Two-Striped Grasshopper

Gryllus bivittatus Say, 1825, described from Arkansas River, near Rocky Mountains, Colorado

Melanoplus bivittatus (Say) Morse, 1894

Caloptenus bivittatus (Say) Scudder, 1902

Caloptenus femoratus Burmeister, 1838, described from Carolina

Melanoplus femoratus (Burmeister) Scudder, 1878

Melanoplus bivittatus ssp. femoratus (Burmeister) Morse, 1894

Acridium flavovittatum Harris, 1841, described from Massachusetts

Caloptenus flavovittatus (Harris) Walker, F., 1870

Melanoplus flavovittatus (Harris) Scudder, 1874

Acridium milberti Serville, 1839, from northern America

Melanoplus milberti (Serville) Scudder, 1897

Heteracris rejecta Walker, 1870, no type locality

Heteracris vittipes Walker, 1870, no type locality

Melanoplus femoratus was apparently differentiated based on red hind tibiae. This in itself is not a significant distinction (see under comments below). Some have considered it as a distinct subspecies or species. Interestingly, while those from the Carolinas (from where femoratus was described) usually have red hind tibiae, they are otherwise characteristic of ssp. bivittatus, and if recognized, the northern subspecies should probably bear the name flavovittatus.

30-55 mm.

Relatively large, smooth, usually yellowish and brown (sometimes greenish or blackish) with two distinct pale yellowish stripes along sides of top. Male with cerci roughly boot-shaped.

Melanoplus thomasi in the southwest is usually bright blue-green with brilliant red on inner hind femur and brilliant red hind tibiae. Where the distribution of M. bivittatus comes near, M. bivittatus never approaches this coloration.

Coast to coast across southern Canada and most of the US except Florida, south Atlantic and Gulf coastal plain, and southwestern arid regions. Perhaps into northernmost Sonora and Chihuahua, Mexico.

Varies with region, but usually relatively moist, lush, weedy or meadowy areas. Meadows, prairies, crop fields, road sides, vacant lots, ditch and stream sides, etc..

June to October.

Wide variety of mostly herbaceous Dicots, but will often also eat herbaceous Monots, leaves of woody plants, will scavenge dead animal matter, etc.

Overwinters as eggs laid mostly in ground, but sometimes in manure, rotting wood, holes in rocks, etc. Adults in late spring usually live until frost if not eaten or killed by disease. Often color darkens noticeably as cool autumn weather sets in.

This is a very common and sometimes destructive species. It's sometimes rather urban habitats plus bold patterning and large size tend to get it noticed more than most grasshopper species.

There are often two subspecies recognized, which because they look somewhat different, have caused some confusion in conflicting descriptions for this species. These intergrade where they come in contact, but mostly displace each other geographically. Those often called subspecies femoratus (should perhaps be called flavovittatus) are from cooler, usually moister regions; found in eastern mountains, the northeast U.S., across Canada (north of the more arid Plains sections), and in the Northwest of the U.S. and British Columbia. Typical bivittatus is found in drier interior regions and to the south. The northern subspecies nearly always has red hind tibiae and lacks the bold dark "racing" stripe along the upper outer face of the hind femur, the stripe replaced by a less contrasting herringbone pattern. The overall coloration is rather different as well, dark parts of the pattern often less developed, but with black lines on the pronotum often more noticeable, and with green individuals common (very rare in the typical subspecies). The typical subspecies has varied hind tibia coloration; buff, yellow, greenish, bluish, purple, brown, black, or combinations of these, but only rarely red (except in southeastern states and apparently Cascades and California Sierras, where red predominates). These subspecies are not separated in Orthoptera Species File, nor in most recent literature, but can be relatively easily recognized.