Editing Grasshopper (section)

==Predators, parasites, and pathogens==
[[File:Cottontop tamarin.JPG|thumb|right|[[Cottontop tamarin]] monkey eating a grasshopper]]
Grasshoppers have a wide range of [[predator]]s at different stages of their lives; eggs are eaten by [[bee-flies]], [[ground beetle]]s and [[blister beetle]]s; hoppers and adults are taken by other insects such as ants, [[robber flies]] and [[sphecid wasp]]s, by [[spider]]s, and by many birds and small mammals including dogs and cats.<ref name=Capinera1709>Capinera, 2008. pp. 1709–1710</ref>

The eggs and nymphs are under attack by [[parasitoid]]s including [[blow flies]], flesh flies, and [[tachinid flies]]. External parasites of adults and nymphs include mites.<ref name=Capinera1709/> Female grasshoppers parasitised by mites produce fewer eggs and thus have fewer offspring than unaffected individuals.<ref>{{cite journal |author= Branson, David H. |year= 2003 |title= Effects of a parasite mite on life-history variation in two grasshopper species |journal= Evolutionary Ecology Research |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=397–409 |issn= 1522-0613 }}</ref>

[[File:Unidentified Phlaeoba, near Godean Street, Yogyakarta, 2015-03-17.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Grasshopper with parasitic [[mite]]s]]
The [[Mermis nigrescens|grasshopper nematode]] (''Mermis nigrescens'') is a long slender worm that infects grasshoppers, living in the insects' [[Circulatory system|hemocoel]]. Adult worms lay eggs on plants and the host becomes infected when the foliage is eaten.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/beneficial/misc/mermis_nigrescens.htm |title=Grasshopper nematode: ''Mermis nigrescens'' |author=Capinera, John |year=2014 |work=Featured Creatures |publisher=IFAS, University of Florida |access-date=28 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402125638/http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/beneficial/misc/mermis_nigrescens.htm |archive-date=2 April 2015 }}</ref> ''[[Spinochordodes tellinii]]'' and ''[[Paragordius tricuspidatus]]'' are parasitic worms that infect grasshoppers and alter the behaviour of their hosts. When the worms are sufficiently developed, the grasshopper is persuaded to leap into a nearby body of water where it drowns, thus enabling the parasite to continue with the next stage of its [[Biological life cycle|life cycle]], which takes place in water.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Do hairworms (Nematomorpha) manipulate the water seeking behaviour of their terrestrial hosts? |author1=Thomas, F. |author2=Schmidt-Rhaesa, A. |author3=Martin, G. |author4=Manu, C. |author5=Durand, P. Renaud, F. |date=May 2002 |journal=[[Journal of Evolutionary Biology]] |doi-access=free |volume=15 |issue=3 |pages=356–361 |doi=10.1046/j.1420-9101.2002.00410.x}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Schmidt-Rhaesa, Andreas |author2=Biron, David G. |author3=Joly, Cécile |author4=Thomas, Frédéric |title=Host–parasite relations and seasonal occurrence of ''Paragordius tricuspidatus'' and ''Spinochordodes tellinii'' (Nematomorpha) in Southern France |journal=[[Zoologischer Anzeiger]] |volume=244 |issue=1 |year=2005 |pages=51–57 |doi=10.1016/j.jcz.2005.04.002|bibcode=2005ZooAn.244...51S |url=https://hal.science/hal-02308189 }}</ref>

[[File:CSIRO ScienceImage 1367 Locusts attacked by the fungus Metarhizium.jpg|thumb|right|[[Locust]]s killed by the naturally occurring fungus, ''[[Metarhizium]]'', an environmentally friendly means of biological control. [[CSIRO]], 2005<ref>{{cite web|title=CSIRO ScienceImage 1367 Locusts attacked by the fungus Metarhizium|url=http://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/image/1367|publisher=CSIRO|access-date=1 April 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402172047/http://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/image/1367|archive-date=2 April 2015}}</ref>]]
Grasshoppers are affected by diseases caused by [[bacteria]], [[virus]]es, [[Fungus|fungi]] and [[protozoa]]. The bacteria ''[[Serratia marcescens]]'' and ''[[Pseudomonas aeruginosa]]'' have both been implicated in causing disease in grasshoppers, as has the [[entomopathogenic fungus]] ''[[Beauveria bassiana]]''. This widespread fungus has been used to control various pest insects around the world, but although it infects grasshoppers, the infection is not usually lethal because basking in the sun has the result of raising the insects' temperature above a threshold tolerated by the fungus.<ref name=Capinera>Capinera, 2008. pp. 1229–1230</ref> The fungal [[pathogen]] ''[[Entomophaga grylli]]'' is able to influence the behaviour of its grasshopper host, causing it to climb to the top of a plant and cling to the stem as it dies. This ensures wide dispersal of the fungal spores liberated from the corpse.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Valovage, W.D. |author2=Nelson, D.R. |year=1990 |title=Host Range and Recorded Distribution of ''Entomophaga grylli'' (Zygomycetes: Entomophthorales), a Fungal Pathogen of Grasshoppers (Orthoptera: Acrididae), in North Dakota |journal=Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society |volume=63 |issue=3 |pages=454–458|jstor=25085205 }}</ref>

The fungal pathogen ''[[Metarhizium acridum]]'' is found in Africa, Australia and Brazil where it has caused [[epizootic]]s in grasshoppers. It is being investigated for possible use as a microbial insecticide for locust control.<ref name=Capinera/> The [[microsporidia]]n fungus ''[[Nosema locustae]]'', once considered to be a protozoan, can be lethal to grasshoppers. It has to be consumed by mouth and is the basis for a bait-based commercial microbial pesticide. Various other microsporidians and protozoans are found in the gut.<ref name=Capinera/>

===Anti-predator defences===
{{further|Anti-predator adaptation}}

Grasshoppers exemplify a range of [[anti-predator adaptation]]s, enabling them to avoid detection, to escape if detected, and in some cases to avoid being eaten if captured. Grasshoppers are often [[camouflage]]d to avoid detection by predators that hunt by sight; some species can change their coloration to suit their surroundings.<ref>Cott, pp. 25–26</ref>

Several species such as the hooded leaf grasshopper ''[[Phyllochoreia|Phyllochoreia ramakrishnai]]'' (Eumastacoidea) are detailed [[mimicry|mimics]] of leaves. Stick grasshoppers (Proscopiidae) mimic wooden sticks in form and coloration.<ref>{{cite book|author=Hogue, C.L.|year=1993|title=Latin American Insects and Entomology|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_3CTf8bnlndwC|publisher=University of California Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_3CTf8bnlndwC/page/n178 167]|isbn=978-0520078499}}</ref> Grasshoppers often have [[deimatic]] patterns on their wings, giving a sudden flash of bright colours that may startle predators long enough to give time to escape in a combination of jump and flight.<ref name=Cott378>Cott, p. 378</ref>

Some species are genuinely [[aposematic]], having both bright warning coloration and sufficient toxicity to dissuade predators. ''[[Dictyophorus productus]]'' (Pyrgomorphidae) is a "heavy, bloated, sluggish insect" that makes no attempt to hide; it has a bright red abdomen. A ''[[Cercopithecus]]'' monkey that ate other grasshoppers refused to eat the species.<ref>Cott, p. 291</ref> Another species, the rainbow or painted grasshopper of Arizona, ''[[Dactylotum bicolor]]'' (Acridoidea), has been shown by experiment with a natural predator, the [[little striped whiptail]] lizard, to be aposematic.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=McGovern |first1=George M. |last2=Mitchell |first2=Joseph C. |last3=Knisley |first3=C. Barry |title=Field Experiments on Prey Selection by the Whiptail Lizard, Cnemidophorus inornatus, in Arizona |journal=Journal of Herpetology |date=1984 |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=347–349 |jstor=1564093 |doi=10.2307/1564093}}</ref>

<gallery mode="nolines" widths="150px">

Atractomorpha lata, Burdwan, West Bengal, India 27 10 2012.jpg|Gaudy grasshopper, ''[[Atractomorpha (grasshopper)|Atractomorpha lata]]'', evades predators with [[camouflage]].
Titanacris Albipes Vol.jpg|Lubber grasshopper, ''[[Titanacris albipes]]'', has [[deimatic]]ally coloured wings, used to startle predators.
LeafGrasshopper.jpg|Leaf grasshopper, ''[[Phyllochoreia|Phyllochoreia ramakrishnai]]'', [[mimicry|mimics]] a green leaf.
Dactylotum bicolor.jpg|Painted grasshopper, ''[[Dactylotum bicolor]]'', deters predators with [[warning coloration]].
Aularches miliaris at Mangunan Orchard, Dlingo, Bantul, Yogyakarta 07.jpg|Spotted grasshopper, ''[[Aularches miliaris]]'', defends itself with toxic foam and warning colours.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Hingston, R.W.G. | year=1927 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2311.1927.tb00060.x |title=The liquid-squirting habit of oriental grasshoppers| journal=Transactions of the Entomological Society of London |volume=75 |pages=65–69}}</ref>
</gallery>