Common name - Great crested grasshopper (Heifer, 1972).
Geographic distribution - found from Arizona to Wyoming, and east to Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas (Heifer, 1972). In Colorado it is found on the plains in the eastern part of the state.
Habitat - areas of sparse to dense grass and usually associated with buffalo bur and plants of the Malvaceae family (Heifer, 1972).
Food habits - in Arizona, T. formosus feeds on low-growing Malvaceae such as Sphaeralcea (Ball et al., 1942).
Adult - medium size. General color is pale green. Head is yellow-brown.
Antennae are heavy and yellow distally. Dorsal posterior margin of prontoum
is an acute angle. The dominant structural characteristic is the strongly
elevated dorsum of the pronotum, which forms a crest. The posterior of
the crest is toothed. Tegmina each have about six large brown spots. Wings
are orange with an incomplete brown band. Hind femora have three dark bands
on outer face. Hind tibiae have strong spines. Male length, 35 mm; female,
45 mm (Ball et al., 1942).
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| Pronotum (Side view) |
Seasonal history - overwinters as an egg. Nymphs occur in May and June. Adults occur from June to August (Ball et al., 1942).
Abundance and importance - does not occur commonly in Colorado. Because of its food habits and infrequent occurrence, it is not considered damaging.
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Biology of Common Colorado Grasshoppers
Grasshoppers of Colorado Contents