Orthoptera of North Carolina
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View Acrididae Members: NC Records

Melanoplus carnegiei Morse, 1904 - Carnegie's Melanoplus

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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 carnegiei is the sole member of the Carnegiei Species Group that occurs in North Carolina (Hill, 2015).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: BugGuide, Google Images,  iNaturalist, GBIFTechnical Description, Adults/Nymphs: Hill (2015)                                                                                  
Comments: A small, short-winged (flightless) grasshopper. The head, body, and tegmina are reddish- to brownish gray. A shining dark postocular stripe that extends to the second thoracic tergite -- often obscure on the metazona -- is the only conspicuous mark on the body; the hind tibiae are red. Melanoplus scudderi and coreyi are similar in size and appearance but can be distinguished based on structural features (Hill, 2015).
Total Length [body plus wings; excludes ovipositor]: 18.5-20.5 mm (to the end of the femur), males; 20.5-27.0 mm, females (Hill, 2015)
Structural Features: The cerci are broadly triangular, with the width about equal to the length; the tip is acute. In comparison, the cerci of scudderi and coreyi are sub-falcate -- more rounded at the tip and curving upward (Hill, 2015). The internal reproductive structures of the male are also diagnostic (see Hill, 2015, for detailed descriptions and illustrations). The tegmina are shorter than in the Scudderi Group, usually reaching only the second abdominal tergite.
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)

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Habitats and Life History
Habitats: The habitats used in the mountains of North Carolina appear to be undescribed. Further south, carnegiei is associated with xeric sandhills
Diet: Undescribed
Observation Methods: Probably best found by flushing it by walking through its habitat
Abundance/Frequency: Based on collection records, this species can be fairly abundant, at least locally
Adult Phenology: Adults are present in late summer to early fall
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: SR
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GU SH
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands
Comments: The most recent North Carolina records for this species date from the 1950s and 1960s (Hill, 2015). Unlike populations found further south, which come primarily from sandhills habitats, North Carolina records all come from the low mountains (Hill, 2015), indicating that more research needs to be done in order to clarify its habitat associations, distribution and abundance in our area. An accurate assessment of its current conservation status cannot be made until more such information is available.