Being tired at the end of a long day in Chalkidiki some years ago,
I was looking for a place where I could take a short rest
when I saw a bench that seemed to be unoccupied!
Alas! What a disappointment!
Right in the middle of the bench a huge insect remained motionless
and indifferent to my presence - and even worse … to my fatigue!
It was an Anacridium aegyptium,
also known as Egyptian grasshopper or tree grasshopper.
This insect is one of the largest grasshopper species in Europe.
Adult males are typically 30–55 mm long,
while females are larger, reaching 45–70 mm in length.
It is easily identified from its large body size
and its eyes, which have characteristic vertical black and white stripes.
Those striking eyes kept looking at me and said:
“Go away, the bench is mine!”
I refused to obey. I stayed, kept looking at it and remembered
that this species is common around the Mediterranean
in a variety of warm, dry habitats, including scrublands, orchards,
and gardens, where it lives on trees and shrubs.
It is a solitary species that feeds on leaves
and is generally considered a minor agricultural pest,
as it does not form large, destructive swarms like the migratory locust.
All this sounds good
but I would expect it to move to the side and make some room for a tired old man,
but it didn’t!
For a picture of Anacridium aegyptium nymph please click HERE.
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