Phaulacridium marginale facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Phaulacridium marginale |
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Phaulacridium
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P. marginale
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| Phaulacridium marginale (Walker, 1870)
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| The distribution of P. marginale in New Zealand | |
Phaulacridium marginale is a special type of grasshopper that lives only in New Zealand. You can find it in many places across the North Island, the South Island, Stewart Island, and even on smaller islands. This grasshopper is quite unique because most of them cannot fly!
Where Does This Grasshopper Live?
P. marginale grasshoppers like to live in open, sunny places. You can often find them on sand dunes near the ocean, along flat grassy areas by rivers, and in mountain areas up to about 1,350 metres (4,430 feet) high. They don't usually live in planted grasslands or in towns and cities.
What Does This Grasshopper Look Like?
Most P. marginale grasshoppers have very small wings, only about 1 to 3 millimetres (0.04 to 0.12 inches) long. Because their wings are so tiny, they cannot fly. This is common for many New Zealand grasshoppers.
However, a very small number of these grasshoppers can have full-sized wings. These fully winged adults are quite rare. If a grasshopper has full wings, it can fly. Flying helps them escape from danger, find new places to live, and get away from predators more easily. Scientists are not sure why some P. marginale grasshoppers grow full wings in New Zealand. One idea is that if they are under a lot of stress, like from bad weather, when they are growing up, it might trigger them to grow full wings.
Male P. marginale grasshoppers are usually 10 to 15 millimetres (0.39 to 0.59 inches) long. Females are much bigger, growing to about 20 to 30 millimetres (0.79 to 1.18 inches) long.
Family and Relatives
Phaulacridium is a group, or genus, of grasshoppers. There are five known species in this group. Two species, Phaulacridium crassum and Phaulacridium vittatum, live only in Australia. Another species, Phaulacridium howeanum, is found only on Lord Howe Island.
In New Zealand, there are two species of Phaulacridium grasshoppers. Besides P. marginale, there is also Phaulacridium otagoense. This species lives only in the South Island of New Zealand, in areas like the Mackenzie Basin and Central Otago.
