Montana Field Guide

The following is taken from Hebard (1928), Brooks (1958), Helfer (1971), Otte (1981), Capinera and Sechrist (1982), Vickery and Kevan (1985), McDaniel (1987), Capinera et al. (2004), and Scott (2010). This is a medium to large, robust grasshopper with a grayish-brown body color, and is normally marked with pale stripes on the forewings (tegmina) which form a V-shape when folded. The wings extend beyond the abdominal tip and are spotted, which often coalesce into distinct dark bands. The hind wing disk is yellow, boarded by a broad black crossband with the anterior spur almost reaching the base. The outer tip is clear. The outer face of the hind femur is dark and usually banded. The femur inner face bears two complete or incomplete dark bands, the background color can vary from ivory, orange, or red. The hind tibia is reddish or orange, sometimes yellow.

Communicative behavior/crepitation*:
Flights are generally straight and range in distance from about 9-30 feet. During flight, crepitation can be heard as a loud crackling sound. No studies in the literature can be found relative to male stridulation and other courtship communicative behavior (Vickery and Kevan 1985).

*Crepitation is the sound produced by grasshoppers making a clicking or snapping noise with their wings when in flight, during courtship, territorial encounters or being disturbed.

The Pronotal Range Grasshopper overwinters in the egg stage. Nymphs hatch from early May to mid-June. Adults occur from June through August, depending upon altitude (Otte 1981, Vickery and Kevan 1985, Capinera et al. 2004, and Scott 2010).

The following comes from Hebard (1928), Brooks (1958), Helfer (1971), Otte (1981), Capinera and Sechrist (1982), Vickery and Kevan (1985), McDaniel (1987), Capinera et al. (2004), and Scott (2010). Body length for males is 24-32 mm, and for females 33-40 mm. The lateral lobes of the pronotum (thorax) is wider ventrally than in the middle. The pronotum is rough or bumpy and the median carina (ridge) is cut by 2 sulci (grooves).

This species can be confused with Red-shanked Grasshopper (Xanthippus corallipes), and both Pardalophora species, the Coral-winged Grasshopper (P. apiculata) and the Haldeman’s Grasshopper (P. heldemanii) (Vickery and Kevan 1985).

Inhabits a diversity of habitats but favors open sunny areas in open pine woodlands, brushy areas, sagebrush steppe, and mixed-grass prairies with dry, sandy soils (Brooks 1958, Otte 1981, Vickery and Kevan 1985, and Capinera et al. 2004).

This species primarily consumes grasses (Brooks 1958, Otte 1981, Vickery and Kevan 1985, Capinera et al. 2004).

Detailed courtship and reproduction is unknown, except that nymphs pass through 5 instars to the adult stage (Capinera and Sechrist 1982).