Orthoptera

Images & Videos

Meadow grasshopper

Closeup of a female fork-tailed bush katydid, Scudderia furcata, showing its long antennae and curved ovipositor, perched on a piece of weathered wood.

D'Orbigny's round-eared bat (Tonatia silvicola) flying with wings spread wide, holding a green katydid in its mouth against a dark background.

Side-by-side comparison of a brown cricket on the left and a camouflaged grasshopper on the right, separated by a large white question mark.

Bowl containing fried crickets garnished with cilantro, alongside slices of fresh tomato, viewed from above with chopsticks placed beside the bowl.

Orthopteran life cycle

A grasshopper clings to a green leaf while emerging from its old, translucent exoskeleton during molting.

A Great Green Bush-Cricket hangs from a grass stem while shedding its pale, empty exoskeleton, with a blurred orange and gray background.

Eastern lubber grasshoppers

A voracious herbivore

Orthoptera: Media

insect group

Videos

Side-by-side comparison of a brown cricket on the left and a camouflaged grasshopper on the right, separated by a large white question mark.

Grasshoppers vs. Crickets: What's the Difference?

One makes music. One gives advice in Pinocchio. Which is which?

Video: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Images

Meadow grasshopper

Meadow grasshopper

A colorful meadow grasshopper (Chorthippus parallelus) on a wooden fence.

© Sandra Standbridge–Moment/Getty Images

Closeup of a female fork-tailed bush katydid, Scudderia furcata, showing its long antennae and curved ovipositor, perched on a piece of weathered wood.

Katydid

Fork-tailed bush katydid (Scudderia furcata).

© Maple Ferryman/Shutterstock.com

D'Orbigny's round-eared bat (Tonatia silvicola) flying with wings spread wide, holding a green katydid in its mouth against a dark background.

Insect predation

D'Orbigny's round-eared bat (Tonatia silvicola) capturing a katydid in flight.

© Merlin D. Tuttle, Bat Conservation International/Photo Researchers, Inc.

Bowl containing fried crickets garnished with cilantro, alongside slices of fresh tomato, viewed from above with chopsticks placed beside the bowl.

Cricket cuisine

A bowl of fried crickets, tomatoes, and vegetables.

© Stockphototrends/Dreamstime.com

Orthopteran life cycle

Orthopteran life cycle

The orthopteran life cycle includes four main stages before adulthood.

Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture

A grasshopper clings to a green leaf while emerging from its old, translucent exoskeleton during molting.

Molting

Grasshopper shedding its exoskeleton.

© Cathy Keifer/Dreamstime.com

A Great Green Bush-Cricket hangs from a grass stem while shedding its pale, empty exoskeleton, with a blurred orange and gray background.

Molting

A great green bush cricket (Tettigonia viridissima) molting its exoskeleton....

© jarafoti/stock.adobe.com

Eastern lubber grasshoppers

Eastern lubber grasshoppers

A mating pair of Eastern lubbers (Romalea guttata), found throughout the...

© Corbis

A voracious herbivore

A voracious herbivore

Mormon crickets (Anabrus simplex) are considered an agricultural pest in...

Stephen Ausmus—ARS/USDA

Jerusalem cricket

Jerusalem cricket

Native to North America, the Jerusalem cricket (Stenopelmatus intermedius)...

E.S. Ross

Giant wētā

Giant wētā

Cook Strait giant wētā (Deinacrida rugosa) found on Matiu/Somes Island in...

Wvermaat

Two field crickets, Gryllus campestris, facing each other on a sandy surface with their antennae extended.

Field crickets

A pair of field crickets (Gryllus campestris).

© Marek R. Swadzba/stock.adobe.com

A yellow and green grasshopper perched on a green leaf, surrounded by blades of grass and other foliage.

Grasshopper

The grasshopper's green coloring makes it less conspicuous among the leaves. This...

© Kirsanov/Shutterstock.com

A mole cricket from the genus Gryllotalpa stands on a dried leaf, showing its large, spade-like forelegs, elongated body, and brown coloration.

Mole cricket

An adult mole cricket (Gryllotalpa species) on a leaf.

© Andrewseahphotography—Wirestock Creators/stock.adobe.com

Dead-leaf grasshopper (Chorotypus saussurei) camouflaged against a dry brown leaf, its body and wings closely resembling the texture and color of the leaf.

Dead-leaf grasshopper

An aptly named dead-leaf grasshopper (Chorotypus saussurei), of Asia.

Pavel Kirillov

diagram: the adult orthopteran

diagram: the adult orthopteran

Internal and external body plan of an adult orthopteran.

From H. Weber, Grundriss der Insektenkunde (1966); Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart

Diagram of a grasshopper with its respiratory system highlighted, showing labeled spiracles and internal tracheal tubes that deliver air throughout the insect's body.

Respiratory system of a grasshopper

The respiratory system of a grasshopper, showing spiracles in the thorax and abdomen.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Close-up of a Mormon cricket showing its brown and tan body, long antennae, and segmented legs on a wooden surface.

Shield-backed katydid

Mormon crickets (Anabrus simplex) are a type of shield-backed katydid.

© Jacob Hamblin/Shutterstock.com

Locust

Locust

Egyptian locust (Anacridium aegyptium).

Joaquim Alves Gaspar

Diagram of a grasshopper showing its nervous system, including labeled parts such as the protocerebrum, deutocerebrum, subesophageal ganglion, thoracic ganglia, ventral nerve cord, and stomatogastric system, with nerves highlighted in yellow.

Arthropod nervous system

In arthropods such as the grasshopper, the brain is divided into specialized areas,...

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Three brown cockroaches with long antennae and spiny legs are positioned on a white background.

orthopterans

Cockroaches, members of the group Orthoptera.

© Wanchai Chaipanya/Dreamstime.com

An elegant grasshopper (Aonocerus elegans) with yellow, black, and red markings stands on a cluster of purple flowers against a blurred green background.

Elegant grasshopper

A male elegant grasshopper (Zonocerus elegans), native to Africa.

© Eleanor H Hattingh/Shutterstock.com

Katydid.

Katydid.

© Alexander Lobanov/Shutterstock.com

Praying mantis

Praying mantis

A close-up of a praying mantis during a rain shower.

© Joe Balynas

A common walkingstick insect, Diapheromera femorata, camouflaged on a green leaf with surrounding foliage in the background.

walkingstick

Walkingsticks (order Phasmida, or Phasmatodea) are slow-moving insects that resemble...

© Jay Ondreicka/Shutterstock.com

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