As Hopping Mad As A Grass Hopper!

Okay so I know grass hoppers make most of us jump! But I decided they deserved an article of their own, as their actually pretty funky little insects. Did you know that they are among what is probably the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago.

Grasshoppers are typically ground-dwelling insects with powerful hind legs which allow them to escape from threats by leaping vigorously.

When we think of grasshoppers, most people recall pleasant childhood memories of trying to catch the jumping insects in meadows or backyards. Say the word locusts, however, and it brings to mind images of historic plagues raining down destruction on crops and devouring every plant in sight. Truth be told, grasshoppers and locusts are members of the same insect order. Getting even weirder, did you know that Grasshoppers Have Ears on Their Bellies!! Talk about super powers!

Although Grasshoppers can hear, They can't distinguish pitch very well. As with most insects, the grasshoppers auditory organs are simple structures. They can detect differences in intensity and rhythm, but not pitch. The musical tunes that grass hoppers are famous for are created using a technique called stridulating or crepitating. If you're not familiar with those terms, don't worry. It's not complicated. Most grasshoppers stridulate, which simply means that they rub their hind legs against their fore wings to produce their trademark tunes. If you've ever tried to catch a grasshopper, you know how far they can jump to flee danger. If humans could jump the way grasshoppers do, we would be able to easily leap the length of a football field. How do these insects jump so far? It's all in those big, back legs.

A grasshopper's hind legs function like miniature catapults. In preparation for a jump, the grasshopper contracts its large muscles slowly, bending its hind legs at the knee joint. A special piece of cuticle within the knee acts as a spring, storing up all the potential energy. The grasshopper then relaxes its leg muscles, allowing the spring to release its energy and fling the insect into the air.

And now some final facts about grass hoppers- Modern-day grasshoppers descend from ancient ancestors that lived long before dinosaurs roamed the Earth. The fossil record shows that primitive grasshoppers first appeared during the Carboniferous period, more than 300 million years ago. Although they are pretty harmless when alone, when locusts swarm, their combined feeding habits can completely defoliate a landscape, leaving farmers without crops and people without food. Grass hoppers also have an interesting history in folk law- in Native American history: In many stories, the grasshopper appears as a greedy, careless, and deceiving insect, which is a sign of bad luck and hostility. This insect was thought of so antagonistically that a Hopi myth was created for disobeying children in which the grasshoppers bite their noses.

However in many western children stories, grass hoppers are depicted as well groomed,

educated bugs, often playing the violin in relevance to their own music making- as seen in James and the giant peach. So there you have it, yes they are hopping mad but there only as hopping mad as a grass hopper should be!