Anacridium aegyptium

Anacridium aegyptium, the Egyptian grasshopper or Egyptian locust, is a species of insect belonging to the subfamily Cyrtacanthacridinae.

Anacridium aegyptium
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Suborder: Caelifera
Family: Acrididae
Subfamily: Cyrtacanthacridinae
Tribe: Cyrtacanthacridini
Genus: Anacridium
Species:
A. aegyptium
Binomial name
Anacridium aegyptium
Synonyms[1]

Subspecies
  • Anacridium aegyptium var. rubrispinum Bei-Bienko, 1948 - Anacridium rubrispinum Bei-Bienko, 1948

Distribution

This quite common species is present in most of Europe, the Afrotropical realm, eastern Palearctic realm, the Near East, and North Africa.[2]

Habitat

These grasshoppers inhabit trees and shrubs, scrub land, maquis, and orchards in warm and bright environments, at an elevation from sea level to 1,500 m.[3][4]

Description
Close-up of Anacridium aegyptium

Anacridium aegyptium is one of the largest European grasshoppers. The adult males grow up to 30–56 mm (1.2–2.2 in) long, while females reach 46–70 mm (1.8–2.8 in) in length. Their bodies are usually gray, brown, or olive-coloured, and their antennae are relatively short and robust. The tibiae of the hind legs are blue, while the femora are orange. The hind femora have characteristic dark marks. They are easily identifiable also by the characteristic eyes with vertical black and white stripes. Their pronota show a dorsal orange stripe and several white small spots. The wings are clear with dark marks.[5][4]

Biology

This species is a folivore, essentially feeding on leaves of various plants.[4] It is a solitary species, not harmful to crops. Adults can mainly be encountered in August and September, but they are active throughout the year.[3][4] After mating, these grasshoppers overwinter as adults. Spawning occurs in spring just under the soil surface[4] and the nymphs appear in April.[3] These grasshoppers undergo several molts.[4] The nymphs have the appearance of the adults, their color varies from yellow to bright green and ocher and the wings are absent or small, as they are gradually developed after each molting.[4]

  • Mating pair
  • Nymph showing typical juvenile wings
  • female adult, 10 cm. (El Escorial, Spain)
  • Adult eyes close-up
  • Adult detail of pronotum

References
  1. BioLib
  2. Fauna europaea
  3. Linnea (in Italian)
  4. Wildside Holidays
  5. Ostravska Univerzita (in Czech)
  • Linneus, 1764 : Museum S.R.M. Ludovicae Ulricae reginae Svecorum, Gothorum, Vandalorum,… In quo animalia raroria, exotica, imprimis Insecta et Conchilia describuntur et determinantur Prodromi instar editum.
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