Orthoptera of North Carolina
Scientific Name: Common Name:
Family (Alpha):
« »
View Acrididae Members: NC Records

Melanoplus acrophilus Hebard, 1935 - Peak-loving Green-legged Melanoplus

Melanoplus acrophilus
Male
Taxonomy
Family: Acrididae Subfamily: Melanoplinae Tribe: Melanoplini
Comments: Melanoplus is our largest genus of Orthopterans, with over 350 species occurring in North America (Cigliano et al., 2017). 38 species have been recorded in North Carolina. Melanoplus acrophilus is a member of the Viridpes species group (Otte, 2002), which in North Carolina also includes deceptus, pachycercus, eurycercus, cherokee, hubbelli, and similis.
Species Status: The type locality for this species is Black Mountain, NC (Hebard, 1935; possibly a mistake for the Black Mountains).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: BugGuide, Google Images,  iNaturalist, GBIFTechnical Description, Adults/Nymphs: Hebard (1934); Otte (2002)                                                                                  
Comments: A small, contrastingly patterned, green-legged Melanoplus. Males are similar to other strongly-marked species in this group, including eurycercus, pachycercus, cherokee, and deceptus, all of which are grayish dorsally, shining black along the post-ocular line, thorax, and abdomen, and white on the face and lower sides of the pronotum. The fore and middle legs are bright green but the hind femur is white, banded with two black bands that are connected along the lower middle face. The abdominal segments are also contrastingly marked with black and white patches. These species are best distinguished based on structural features.
Total Length [body plus wings; excludes ovipositor]: 16-19 mm (to end of femur), males; 18-22 mm, females (Otte, 2002)
Structural Features: Furculae are indistinct mounds. Cerci are widened at the tip, broader than at the middle. Tegmina are slightly shorter or slightly longer than the pronotum, but usually do no reach the middle of the abdomen (Otte, 2002). The internal reproductive structures are diagnostic (see Hebard, 1934, and Otte, 2002, for descriptions and illustrations).
Distribution in North Carolina
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Adult Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: As indicated by the name acrophilus, most, if not all records, come from high elevations, from around 3,800 at Mountain Lake to over 6,000' at Roan Mountain and Mount Mitchell. Otte (2002) lists mountain slopes and ridges; probably in open wood or wood margins.
Diet: Apparently not described
Observation Methods: Probably best found by flushing it by walking through its habitat
Abundance/Frequency: Probably fairly local
Adult Phenology: Adults have been observed from May to July
See also Habitat Account for Montane Forblands and Successional Fields
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: W3
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G2G3 S2S3
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands
Comments: This species has a small global range: the majority of records for this species come from the mountains of North Carolina, with the range extending a short distance southward into the mountains of northwestern Georgia and northward to Mountain Lake in Virginia (Otte, 2002). As a high elevation species, it may be at high risk due to the reduction of cool, moist habitats resulting from global climate change.

Image Gallery for Melanoplus acrophilus - Peak-loving Green-legged Melanoplus

Recorded by: E. Corey, J. Lynch
Watauga Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: B.B. Fulton
Yancey Co.
Comment: NCSU Insect Museum specimen. Internal reproductive structures were dissected and are partially exposed
Recorded by: B.B. Fulton
Yancey Co.
Comment: NCSU Insect Museum specimen