About Grasshoppers & Crickets
Grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids belong to the order Orthoptera. They have powerful hind legs and include species that sing, camouflage themselves in vegetation, form swarms, or become important food for wildlife.
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Jumping Legs
Large hind legs store energy for powerful jumps.
Learn MoreSound
Many species communicate by rubbing body parts together.
Learn MoreHearing
Orthopterans have specialized hearing organs.
Learn MoreDiet
Many grasshoppers eat plants, while some crickets and katydids are omnivorous.
Learn MoreLocusts
Locusts are grasshoppers capable of dramatic swarm phases.
Learn MoreCamouflage
Katydids often resemble leaves.
Learn MoreLife Cycle
Orthopterans use incomplete metamorphosis.
Learn MoreFood Web
Grasshoppers and crickets are major prey animals.
Learn MoreJumping Legs
Jumping helps these insects escape predators and move through vegetation.
Sound
Crickets often rub wings, while many grasshoppers rub legs against wings.
Hearing
Depending on the group, eardrum-like structures may occur on the legs or abdomen.
Diet
Heavy feeding can affect crops when populations become extremely large.
Locusts
Crowding can trigger changes in behavior, color, movement, and reproduction.
Camouflage
Green color, veins, body shape, and stillness can make them difficult to detect.
Life Cycle
Young nymphs resemble smaller wingless adults and gradually develop through molts.
Food Web
Birds, reptiles, mammals, spiders, amphibians, and other insects all feed on them.