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Project Noah Nature School
Taeniopoda eques
Very large grasshoper (about 10 centimeters, 4 inches) found making his/her way across a road that leads up to the Coronado National Forest. Not at all afraid to take risks, I watched it survive car after car before reaching its goal, and shortly disappearing into the woods.
The males of this species have an interesting character; they turn a blind eye to gender, race, and even to different creatures altogether when choosing a mate for intercourse. That is, they are comfortable mounting male and female Western Horse Lubbers, other kinds of grasshopers, and some lizard species. On top of that, they must not have much game and actively stalk an unwillinging female before surprisingly mounting them, which causes the victim to react violently. On a different subject, the males are the only ones that fly, yet their bulky size limits flight as being very useful (probably why this one preferred to walk a road than fly over it). The name seems to come from how the head in a side view (like this shot) resembles a horse.
I do live in Tucson actually, and I'll try to participate in it, thanks Emily!
Thanks for helping me out with my identification. I see you are near Tucson. Be sure to google BioBlitz and check out the BioBlitz Mission. October 21-22, National Geographic has chosen the Saguaro National Park for their annual BioBlitz species inventory. You can still sign up for an inventory team.
Spotted on Sep 11, 2011
Submitted on Sep 11, 2011
