A character in the wildly popular television show “The Office” once said this about Florida to a co-worker:
“Florida is America’s basement. It’s wet, it’s full of mold, strange insects, alligators. Alligators are dinosaurs, Dwight!”
Fortunately, there are no dinosaurs. But there are lots of insects.
The large, brightly colored Eastern lubber grasshopper is an insect hard to miss.
Its bright orange, yellow and red colors are a warning to predators that it contains toxins that will make it sick. But the colors are a spectacular sight for people just watching the slow moving, large grasshopper displaying its hues.
Why not touch an Eastern lubber grasshopper?
It is much better to watch than touch this insect. If you pick up this grasshopper it will make a loud hissing noise and secrete an irritating, foul-smelling foamy spray.
The four-inch long grasshopper cannot fly. Instead it moves in short clumsy hops. It can also walk or crawl.
What does the Eastern lubber grasshopper eat?
The Eastern lubber grasshopper (Romalea guttata) eats broadleaf plants and will feast in gardens.
Where do the Eastern lubber grasshoppers live?
They live throughout Florida and from North Carolina to Tennessee, in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, and Arizona. These insects mostly reside in open pinewoods, weedy vegetation and weedy fields.
How does the Eastern lubber grasshopper evolve?
In the nymph stage they look very different than as adults. At that young age they are mostly black with a narrow median yellow stripe, and red on the head and front legs.
In the adult stage they can look different depending on where they live. In northern Florida, this insect is mostly black with yellow markings. The lubbers in southern Florida are mostly yellow with red and black markings and red on the forewings.
Please support local community journalism and stay informed about Southwest Florida news by subscribing to The News-Press and Naples Daily News; download the free News-Press or Naples Daily News app, and sign up for daily briefing email newsletter, food & dining and growth & development newsletters here and here.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: When it comes to the Eastern lubber grasshopper: Don’t touch
Reporting by Mark H. Bickel, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
