Orthoptera of North Carolina

Family (Alpha):

View	Acrididae Members:	NC Records
Arphia granulata Saussure, 1884 - Southern Yellow-winged Locust

Taxonomy

Family: Acrididae	Subfamily: Oedopodinae	Tribe: Arphiini
Comments: One of eleven species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Cigliano et al., 2018), three of which have been recorded in North Carolina

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Capinera et al. (2004)	Online Photographs: BugGuide, OSF, Google Images, iNaturalist, GBIF	Technical Description, Adults/Nymphs: Blatchley (1920); Otte (1984)
Comments: A stocky, medium-sized Band-winged Locust. The color of the body and tegmina ranges from yellow-brown to sooty gray, with a pale yellow stripe on the posterior, dorsal surface of the tegmina -- both the ground color and stripe appear to be adaptations to habitats with plentiful pine straw and frequently scorched substrates. The hindwings are yellow at the base and bounded outwardly by a black band. The general color and stripe on the tegmina are similar in A. sulphurea, which is best distinguished by structural features (see below).
Total Length [body plus wings; excludes ovipositor]: 27-33, males; 30-37 mm, females (Capinera et al., 2004)
Structural Features: The frontal costa is flattened scarcely or not narrowed above the antennae, unlike the case in the otherwise similar A. sulphurea (Blatchley, 1920). Although A. xanthoptera has a similar frontal costa, the mid-dorsal ridge of the pronotum is much more elevated in that species, which is larger and lacks the yellowish stripe on the tegmina. As implied by the species name, the pronotum is strongly granulated.
Singing Behavior: Crepitates in flight but more weakly than in sulphurea or xanthoptera (Blatchley, 1920). Males also stridulate -- see Otte (1970) for a description and spectrograms

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: The majority of our records come from Longleaf Pine habitats, primarily savannas, flatwoods but with at least one historic record from the Fall-line Sandhills. In Florida, it also occurs in open pine woodlands (Rehn and Hebard, 1916), but additionally in old fields and ruderal habitats (Blatchely, 1920; Capinera et al., 2004). In 2018, a population of this species was found in Brunswick County in that sort of habitat -- a sandy old field maintained in low herb cover as part of an airport runway.

Diet: Probably feeds mainly on grasses

Observation Methods: Found by flushing individuals by walking through their habitats

Abundance/Frequency: Recorded only infrequently and in small numbers on any one occasion

Adult Phenology: Most of our records come from late summer but we have one record from late May and one from June

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status: SR

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 S2S3

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands

Comments: This species appears to be more of a habitat specialist than our other two species of Arphia and has a far more restricted range within the state. Although we have conducted fairly extensive sampling within coastal Longleaf Pine savannas and flatwoods, we still have fewer than ten records for this species in North Carolina, several of which are historic. Based on its occupation of sandy old fields further south -- an example of which was found in North Carolina in 2018 -- it may turn out to be more widely distributed and less of a specialist than originally thought. However, more data are needed on its distribution and habitat associations before an accurate assessment can be made of its conservation status and needs.

Image Gallery for Arphia granulata - Southern Yellow-winged Locust
	Recorded by: Mark Shields, Hunter Phillips Carteret Co. Comment:	Recorded by: Mark Shields, Hunter Phillips Carteret Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Ed Corey Bladen Co. Comment:	Recorded by: Ed Corey Bladen Co. Comment: Male netted and photographed, no narrowing above antennae (as seen in A. sulphurea)
	Recorded by: Ed Corey Bladen Co. Comment: Male netted and photographed, no narrowing above antennae (as seen in A. sulphurea)	Recorded by: Mark Shields Onslow Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Shields Onslow Co. Comment:	Recorded by: Stephen Hall Brunswick Co. Comment: Identification based on the pale stripe on forewings and late season date
	Recorded by: E. Corey Onslow Co. Comment:

Arphia granulata Saussure, 1884 - Southern Yellow-winged Locust

Image Gallery for Arphia granulata - Southern Yellow-winged Locust