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Grasshoppers of Zihuatanejo

INFRAORDER ACRIDIDEA

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Arthropods (Phylum Arthropoda)

-Hexapods (Subphylum Hexapoda)

-Insects (Class Insecta)

-Winged and Once-winged Insects (Subclass Pterygota)

-Grasshoppers, Crickets, and Katydids (Order Orthoptera)

-Grasshoppers, Locusts, and Allies (Suborder Caelifera)

-Grasshoppers (Infraorder Acrididea)

-Short-horned Grasshoppers and Locusts (Superfamily Acridoidea)

-Short-horned Grasshoppers (Family Acrididae)

-Stridulating Slantface Grasshoppers (Subfamily Gomphocerinae)

-Tribe Amblytropidiini

-Genus Amblytropidia

-Brown Winter Grasshopper (Amblytropidia mysteca)


Ranges from light to dark brown, with some individuals showing a grayish tint. It often has subtle striping or mottling that provides camouflage in dry grasses or soil. Unlike many grasshoppers, Amblytropidia mysteca is active during the cooler months and has been observed foraging in late fall and early winter.

Brown Winter Grasshopper

Amblytropidia mysteca

Description

  • Amblytropidia mysteca is a short-horned grasshopper in the family Acrididae and subfamily Ommatolampinae. It is a relatively small to medium-sized grasshopper with a compact body, short antennae, powerful hind legs, and wings adapted for short flights. Its brown, grey, and greenish colouration provides camouflage among grasses and low vegetation.

Range

  • Amblytropidia mysteca is a Mexican species associated with the Pacific slope and southern Mexico. It occurs in Guerrero and may be encountered around Zihuatanejo in suitable grassland, scrub, and forest-edge habitats.

Habitat

  • Adults are associated with warm, open and semi-open environments including tropical dry forest, scrub, grassland, woodland edges, agricultural areas, and areas of dense herbaceous vegetation. They generally remain close to the ground among grasses and low plants.

Diet

  • Amblytropidia mysteca is primarily herbivorous, feeding on grasses, leaves, and other green plant material. Like related grasshoppers, it is likely to consume a range of available herbaceous plants rather than depending on a single food species.

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