look at the eyes
the guy hiding
the remnant of senduduk leaves
It was quite late for my normal camera time. 6.30pm. But I noticed an interesting creature locally known as "belalang kunyit". Belalang is grasshopper. Kunyit is tumeric....... it is like saying a yellow grasshopper. I think belalang kunyit is the biggest among grasshoppers over here ....... about the size of normal thumb and the length of normal middle finger.... sorry for not giving the dimension in metric. (haha)
I know, this little guy had been chewing the leaves of senduduk. Look at the remnants!!.... I never see this guy hopping around and definitely not on grass. But why call it grasshopper?....
~bangchik
Putrajaya, Malaysia
Hi Bangchik! It is a very interesting question! I don't know the answer. I like to watch these guys hopping, but not in my garden! I don't see them in my recent garden, but they were a disaster in our previous garden in the Midwest.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos - grashoppers can jump 20 times their own body length tho I have never seen them do it. We rarely see or hear the sound of a grasshopper in the garden.
ReplyDeleteI love this post!
ReplyDeleteI have seen mummy grasshopper hop from plant to plant to tree in my garden. The babies also hop around, hop around ...
ReplyDeleteI suddenly remember a story about the grasshopper and the ant. Lazy grasshopper didn't make hay while the sun shone and laughed at the hardworking ant. Grassy ended up hungry during winter and he learnt a good lesson. Will he change for the better? Should the ant help him?
That is an excellent question. When I worked on golf courses, they were never on the grass. We always found them on the cart paths and other plants.
ReplyDeleteThese photos are just utterly mesmerizing. You've done a fabulous job with them.
ReplyDeleteVery good photos. I love taking macros of grasshoppers but I would rather do it some where other than my garden :) Have a good week.
ReplyDeleteJessica
Very great photos of a very handsome fella.
ReplyDeleteI love the photos. Your grasshopper looks fat and happy. I hope he isn't eating too many of your plants!
ReplyDeleteTATYANA, LEAVESNBLOOM, Laura Gardens in Desert, Autumn Belle , azplantlady , jodi (bloomingwriter) , Jessica , teresa.
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone. When things are in some form of equilibrium or stable state, things seem to be at peace. Biodiversity is all about achieving that state..... Lacking one little thing, or more of one thing, there should be a little bit of turmoil. Disaster due to grasshoppers could be due to this condition...
But our Belalang Kunyit looks alright. The fella is still there late today, clutching the little branch and one more leaf ends up in his belly. One day he will fly or rather hop some where else looking for his girlfriend or something.
This belalang kunyit is a loner, where as the red bugs in my previous posts live in a community....
I read somewhere about locusts migrating in millions and sweep clean every greens along the way. Phew.... lucky, there is no such phenomena here!
The one that hops around is much smaller, brownish in colour. That must be the true grasshopper. The rest are mutants.... haha.
Thanks Belle for such a lovely short story. I guess some creature survive by staying dormant or hibernate for a while until condition is a lot better.
Cheers...
Have a great new year!!
~bangchik
Putrajaya, Malaysia
Thanks JEANNE .... he should be fat because he got the whole senduduk plant to himself. I am not too sure about him being happy....
ReplyDeleteCheers
~bangchik
You are most kind to leave him there to finish eating your plant. They are most interesting to watch. Their mouths are like machines.....stripping the plant of all the foliage.
ReplyDeleteJanet... the mouth truly like machine. He may just stop by for a short while as a transit to DontknowLand.... ~bangchik
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute little fellow :)
ReplyDeleteWe often have grasshoppers here. But we're hoping that our chickens will "weed" them out.
ReplyDeleteMarie
ReplyDeleteKim and Victoria
Every living creature will live within the big web of food chain. One will eat another and be eaten by some others. Grasshoppers are of no exception. Well done chickens... haha.
the fella is cute, the colour is so special.
~bangchik
I have this problem too.. in a day, the hoppy will eat up all my herbs.. my basil plant are the worse affected. How do I get rid of these hoppers?? I also have the small green ones.. they eat up all my mint!! I so hate this hoppers
ReplyDelete