Chorthippus biguttulus
Introduction Close-Up of a Chorthippus biguttulus'''''Chorthippus biguttulus''''', the '''bow-winged grasshopper''', is one of the most common species of grasshopper found in the dry grassland of northern and central Europe. It is part of a group of species (''biguttulus''-group) that are very difficult to identify morphologically. ''Chorthippus biguttulus'' was previously classified (with ''C. brunneus'' and ''C. mollis'') as a single species ''Stauroderus variabilis''. The three species were distinguished using song characteristics.
Distribution The range of the bow-winged grasshopper extends from the Finland and Scandinavia in the north to the Alps and Pyrenees in the south, and goes well into Asia including Japan.
Physical appearance Females grow to approximately  and are larger than males that grow to approximately . Males often have a red tip to the abdomen while females do not. They can be extremely variable in colour from green to black-brown to rose.''C. brunneus'', ''C. bigguttulus'' and ''C. mollis'' are morphologically distinguished by the size of the costal and subcostal fields of the wings. They can also be recognized by their sounds, which is more easy.
References