''Schistocerca americana'' is a species of grasshopper in the family Acrididae known commonly as the American grasshopperSquitier, J. M. and J. L. Capinera
''Schistocerca americana'' (Drury).
Entomology and Nematology. University of Florida IFAS. and American bird grasshopper.Alborn, H. T., et al. (2007)
Disulfooxy fatty acids from the American bird grasshopper ''Schistocerca americana'', elicitors of plant volatiles.
''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences'' 104(32) 12976-81. It is native to North America, where it occurs in the

eastern United States The Eastern United States, commonly referred to as the American East, Eastern America, or simply the East, is the region of the United States to the east of the Mississippi River. In some cases the term may refer to a smaller area or the East C ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and

the Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

. Occasional, localized outbreaks of this grasshopper occur, and it is often referred to as a

locust Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstanc ...

,Greenlee, K. J. and J. F. Harrison. (2004)
Development of respiratory function in the American locust ''Schistocerca americana'' I. Across-instar effects.
''Journal of Experimental Biology'' 207(3) 497-508. though it lacks the true swarming form of its congener, the

desert locust The desert locust (''Schistocerca gregaria'') is a species of locust, a periodically swarming, short-horned grasshopper in the family Acrididae. They are found primarily in the deserts and dry areas of northern and eastern Africa, Arabia, and sou ...

(''S. gregaria'').Thomas, M. C
The American grasshopper, ''Schistocerca americana americana'' (Drury) (Orthoptera: Acrididae).
Entomology Circular No. 342. Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. May, 1991.

Description

The adult male of the species is up to long, and the adult female may reach . The body of the adult is generally yellow-brown in color and the wings are pale with large brown spots. The

nymphs A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ...

are different in appearance. They change color as they mature and their coloration is a polyphenic trait - influenced by environmental conditions, producing multiple forms from one genotype. This is not uncommon among grasshoppers. In this species, the coloration of the nymphs is especially influenced by temperature. Nymphs are various shades of green, yellow, or red, usually with a pattern of black markings. They are often red at lower temperatures, but at higher temperatures, only green and yellow shades occur. Black patterning is also influenced by temperature, with lower temperatures inducing darker markings. Density is also a common factor in color polyphenism, but it is less important in this species than in many other grasshoppers. Nymphs reared in crowded conditions develop darker black markings, but density has little effect on their background colors.Tanaka, S. (2004)
Environmental control of body-color polyphenism in the American grasshopper, ''Schistocerca americana''.
''Annals of the Entomological Society of America'' 97(2) 293-301.

Taxonomy

''S. americana'' is closely related to the tropical swarming locust '' S. piceifrons'' with which it can be readily hybridized in the laboratory.Harvey AW (1981) A reclassification of the ''Schistocerca americana'' complex (Orthopera: Acrididae) ''Acrida'' 10(2): 61-77.

Development

Two generations occur per year. The female lays up to three clutches of eggs in a season. A clutch contains 60 to 80 light orange eggs, each about 7 to 8 mm long. The eggs stick together in a frothy mass and the female deposits the mass up to 3 cm deep in the soil. In 3 to 4 weeks, the nymphs emerge and dig to the surface. They remain in a group, feeding together, becoming less

gregarious Sociality is the degree to which individuals in an animal population tend to associate in social groups (gregariousness) and form cooperative societies. Sociality is a survival response to evolutionary pressures. For example, when a mother wasp ...

as they develop. An individual usually progresses through six

instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ...

s during development, but in low densities, some nymphs complete five. The first-instar nymph is up to 9 mm long and lacks wing structures. The second instar has wing pads and more segments in its antennae. The third instar is up to 2 cm long and the wing pads are triangular. The fourth instar has venation in its wing pads. The fifth instar is up to 3.5 cm long and the wing pads have changed position. By the sixth instar, the wings have elongated. This species

overwinters Overwintering is the process by which some organisms pass through or wait out the winter season, or pass through that period of the year when "winter" conditions (cold or sub-zero temperatures, ice, snow, limited food supplies) make normal activ ...

as an adult rather than in the egg, as many other grasshoppers do.

Impacts

This is not a severe agricultural pest in terms of economic losses, but it can sometimes cause significant damage to many kinds of crops. It is perhaps best known in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, where it can be a pest of

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

. When conditions are right, "population explosions" occur and masses of grasshoppers descend on crop plants. It can defoliate trees and eat smaller plants to the ground. Though its outbreaks are rare, it is considered to be the most destructive grasshopper in Florida.Capinera, J. L. (1993)
Differentiation of nymphal instars in ''Schistocerca americana'' (Orthoptera: Acrididae).
''The Florida Entomologist'' 76(1) 175-79. Besides citrus, it is known to feed on corn,

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...

oat The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other cereals and pseudocereals). While oats are suitable for human con ...

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small and ...

, rye, sugarcane,

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...

crops, and

ornamentals Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

. Other host plants include many

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

es, such as bahiagrass,

bermudagrass ''Cynodon dactylon'', commonly known as Bermuda grass, is a grass found worldwide. It is native to Europe, Africa, Australia and much of Asia. It has been introduced to the Americas. Although it is not native to Bermuda, it is an abundant invasi ...

, and

crabgrass ''Digitaria'' is a genus of plants in the grass family native to tropical and warm temperate regions but can occur in tropical, subtropical, and cooler temperate regions as well. Common names include crabgrass, finger-grass, and fonio. They are ...

. It can infest

dogwood ''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shru ...

, hickory, and

palm trees Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae **List of Arecaceae genera * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music * Palm ( ...

. It can also damage buildings with chewing activity, particularly objects such as

window screen A window screen (also known as insect screen, bug screen, fly screen, flywire, wire mesh, or window net) is designed to cover the opening of a window. It is usually a mesh made of metal, fibreglass, plastic wire, or other pieces of plastic an ...

Chemistry

This species was the source of a newly discovered class of chemical compounds called caeliferins. These are

fatty acid In chemistry, particularly in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an unbranched chain of an even number of carbon atoms, ...

chains present in the grasshopper's regurgitant. When the grasshopper feeds on a plant, the caeliferins in the regurgitant induce the plant to release

volatile organic compound Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have a high vapour pressure at room temperature. High vapor pressure correlates with a low boiling point, which relates to the number of the sample's molecules in the surrounding air, a ...

s. This is a common response to herbivory in plants; the volatile organic compounds are attractive to predators of the herbivorous insects. Caeliferins may also play a role in defense, as the grasshopper expels large amounts of regurgitant when attacked.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q10287974 Acrididae Agricultural pest insects Orthoptera of North America Insects described in 1770 Taxa named by Dru Drury