Orthoptera of North Carolina
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View Acrididae Members: NC Records

Melanoplus nigrescens (Scudder, 1877) - Black-sided Spur-throat Grasshopper

Melanoplus nigrescensMelanoplus nigrescensMelanoplus nigrescens
Nymph
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.
Species Status: Blatchley (1920) placed nigrescens in the Fasciatus Species Group, which is not currently recognized by Cigliano et al. (accessed 2024-10). This group also includes Melanoplus walshi, which is the only other species in Blatchley's group that occurs in North Carolina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: BugGuide, Google Images,  iNaturalist, GBIFTechnical Description, Adults/Nymphs: Blatchley (1920)                                                                                  
Comments: This is relatively large for a short-winged species of Melanoplus. The dorsal surfaces of the head and pronotum are a dark grayish brown. The piceous black stripe typical of Melanoplus species is present in this species, extending onto the meso- and metanota. The lateral field of the tegimina is also black, strongly contrasting with the dorsal field, which is pale with a dark streak at the base of the inner margin. The lower portion of the head, pronotum and the abdomen are also a pale clay color. The lateral field of the hind femur is white and marked with two dark patches and the apical joint is also black. The basal black patch is chevron shaped and has a distinctive extension running to the base of the femur. The hind tibiae are purplish red.
Total Length [body plus wings; excludes ovipositor]: 23 mm, males; 26.5 mm, females (Blatchley, 1920)
Structural Features: The tegmina are longer than the prontoum and are longer than wide and apically subacute. The cerci of the males are compressed, straight, and tapering on the middle half, bent beyond the middle slightly inward and upward, and with the tip squarely truncated with rounded angles. The subgenital plate has an apical tubercle (Blatchley, 1920).
Nymphal Stages and Development: Nymphs are brownish gray and can be recognized by the markings on the hind femur.
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: This species appears to be strongly associated with dry-xeric stands of oak forests. These probably include maritime forests at Southport, where it was originally discovered. Inland in the Coastal Plain it probably is associated with dry sandridge supporting xeric oaks and longleaf pine at Lake Waccama and has been observed by Hall in this habitat in Moore County. In the Uwharries, it occurs on dry ridgetops supporting either dry oak-hickory forest or Piedmont monadnock forests. The common denominator of these habitats is the presence of xerophytic oaks, upland heaths, and tangles of Muscadine grapes.
Diet: Unobserved, but in the Uwharries it appears to be associated with tangles of Muscadine, which commonly cover extensive areas of the ground. Xerophytic heaths are another possibility, as are the xerophytic oaks if the species turns out to be at least semi-arboreal.
Observation Methods: Found by flushing individuals while walking through their habitat.
Abundance/Frequency: Populations are typically fairly sparse
Adult Phenology: Single brooded, with nymphs present from May to late June and adults emerging in late June and persisting until late October.
See also Habitat Account for General Dry-Xeric Hardwood Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: W3
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GU S2S3
State Protection: [W3]
Comments: This species is known only from a few sites in the Southeast, with specimens documented from North Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama (Hill and Dakin, 2011). In North Carolina, it is known only from three separate areas within the state and from populations that also appear to be widely separated.

Image Gallery for Melanoplus nigrescens - Black-sided Spur-throat Grasshopper

Recorded by: Stephen Hall
Randolph Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Hall
Randolph Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Stephen Hall
Randolph Co.
Comment: