A Stick Grasshopper Displays Its Tiny Wings in Chile - Observation of the Week, 6/2/21

Our Observation of the Week is this Neotropical Stick Grasshopper (Family Proscopiidae), seen in Chile by @ninangel!

“On January 17th, this summer, I went to explore a place called ‘Cerro Grande’ in La Serena city, in Coquimbo, Chile,” says Ninosca Angel, a marine biology student currently working on her Master’s degree in Zoology.

I was with a marine biologist friend, and while taking pictures of insects we saw two proscopids and I noticed that one of them had wings! Apparently, they were fighting, since the winged proscopid was missing a leg, so I separated them to be able to appreciate the beauty of its wings. When I had it in my hand it made a strange sound, perhaps feeling threatened, then I returned it to its place, surprised by what that can be found in nature. I had never seen a proscopid with wings, I was fascinated.

While they may bear a superficial resemblance to “true” stick insects (Order Phasmida) Proscopiids are grasshoppers, being part of the Infraorder Acrididea. They occur in Central and South America and in addition to their stick-like bodies (the better to camouflage with), their heads are elongated, with bulbous eyes located near the top next to short antennae. Some, at least, are able to leap, but none are known to actually fly.

Ninosca (above) says she’s always been interested in nature, and feels “fortunate to have a family that loves nature, camping and exploring, either alone or with friends to see if we discover any new species and to record everything we observe.” In addition to schoolwork, she makes videos to raise awareness about nature and of course has started posting her observations to iNat. “I use iNaturalist,” she says,

because I like to share images and data of nature to be able to provide information for scientific research and above all, I like to learn about the species that are found. I would like everyone to use the platform to collaborate and take care of our biodiversity.

- The late macro photographer/videographer (and iNat user) Andreas Kay shot some beautiful footage of Proscopiids, you can see videos here and here.

- Don’t forget, iNaturalist Chile recently joined the iNaturalist network!

Posted on June 3, 2021 12:07 AM by