Grasshoppers are beautiful insects that you find anywhere in the World. These creatures belong to the suborder Calcifera and have a head, thorax, and abdomen like other insects. The head consists of a pair of compound eyes that help them visualize clearly and to catch their prey.
They also have three simple eyes and thread-like antennae. These tiny creatures can jump 20 times their body weight. Their hind legs comprise sturdy muscles which assist them in jumping high in the air.
They make chirping sounds and communicate with each other. Female grasshoppers are larger than male grasshoppers, and you will find a sharp point at the abdomen end for laying eggs.
You will find almost 18,000 species of grasshoppers all over the World. Most grasshoppers feed on plants, carrots, beans, lettuce, and others. You will mainly find grasshoppers in gardens or crop fields.
But do grasshoppers eat worms? Very few species of grasshoppers can eat worms and other invertebrates.
The article discusses more about grasshopper feeding. So, keep reading the blog to know what grasshoppers eat to survive.
What Does A Grasshopper Eat?
Grasshoppers need food to survive, and they die whenever they don’t get an adequate amount of food.
These tiny creatures are naturally polyphagous and can eat different kinds of food. There are 18,000 species of grasshoppers, and all the species do not exhibit the same nature towards diet.
But 80 percent of the species of grasshoppers eat plants. They prefer to eat mainly grass cereal plants(wheat, corn, barley), leaves, seeds, the bark of the trees, and flowers.
The remaining 20 percent of species can exhibit omnivorous behavior and feed on animal tissues and invertebrates like worms, spiders, and snails.
Some species of grasshoppers even eat toxic plants and store them on their tiny body to get rid of their predators.
Feeding grasshoppers also depends on location—for instance, the grasshoppers who stay in the desert feed on cactus and shrubs.
Sometimes when food is unavailable, they feed on insects and other grasshoppers. Now we will talk about the grasshoppers staying in the rainforest. They feed on fruits, flowers, and trees. So, location also plays a vital role in their diet.
The grasshoppers which feed on animals have a different body structure compared to the species of grasshoppers that feed only on plant materials. You will find long legs, large eyes, and sharp claws on the legs of the grasshoppers who feed animals.
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What Do A Nymph Grasshopper Eat?
Nymph grasshoppers cannot fly long distances. Additionally, their mandible is not that much robust as that of adult grasshopper. So, they feed on plants that are easy to digest, like grass and shoot. Nymph grasshoppers even eat small amounts of food than adult grasshoppers. But as the mandibles grow with time, they start eating more food like adults.
Types Of Grasshopper Feeding
If the grasshopper is eating flowers, plants, or grasses, it uses its mandible to bite plant pieces and chew them.
But if the grasshopper eats any insect or ants, it inserts its proboscis into that insect and sucks its fluid.
LifeSpan Of Grasshopper
The life span of a grasshopper is only 12 months. The survival rate of grasshopper nymphs is only 50 percent, as birds, lizards, and snakes eat them.
These tiny creatures also die soon when the weather is too cold, or they don’t get enough food.
Can Some Worms Kill Grasshoppers?
Yes, some worms are dangerous for grasshoppers and can kill them.
For instance, female roundworms belonging to phylum nematodes usually crawl on the leaves. They lay eggs in the rainy season, and the grasshoppers ingest them while feeding on plants.
The egg hatches inside the grasshopper and develops into an adult nematode. It starts sucking the blood of the grasshopper. Several nematodes can develop within a grasshopper and can lead to premature death. The nematodes leave the grasshopper’s body upon death and move to the soil.
Do Grasshoppers Drink?
Yes, some species of grasshoppers drink water from the ground. They insert their proboscis into the water source and start sucking water.
But some species don’t drink water for an extended period because their body gets water while feeding plants and grass.
Enemies Of Grasshopper
Grasshoppers have a lot of predators like flies, frogs, rodents, spiders, and even human beings. Grasshoppers are considered a food item in African and Latin American Countries.
Some species of flies lay eggs near the grasshopper eggs.
When the fly’s egg hatches, it feeds on grasshopper eggs. Some species of flies lay eggs when the grasshopper is flying and when this egg hatches, it feeds on a grasshopper.
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Frequently Asked Questions
1. What do Grasshoppers eat in the food chain?
Grasshoppers play an essential role in the food chain. They feed on grass, and frogs eat them. Snakes eat the frogs. The Hawk finally eats snakes.
2. Can grasshoppers bite?
Grasshoppers generally don’t bite human beings. But if they are threatened, they can bite.
However, their bite will not harm human beings.
3. How long can a grasshopper live without food?
Researchers say grasshoppers can live without food for almost 2 to 10 days. They are undoubtedly small creatures but eat more food than their weight. They get nutrients and minerals mostly from plants and grass.
Conclusion
Grasshoppers are tiny creatures that look adorable while flying in your garden. They are not much selective towards their food. They feed mainly on plants, cereals, the bark of the tree, and flowers. But when plants are scarce, they feed on insects, ants, and worms or move to other locations.
However, farmers dont like grasshoppers in their crop fields because they eat the crops. So farmers usually spread insecticides to avoid grasshoppers.
We thank you for reading this article and hope you will share it on Facebook and Instagram so that many people can read it.
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Swatisweta Parida
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