Wednesday, August 3, 2022

Carolina Locust (Searsport, Maine)

Dissosteira carolina

Vinnie (one of our standard poodles) has taken to hunting locusts every day. She has learned where they can be found and regularly patrols there…getting so excited when they fly up and away from her.

Carolina locusts are a type of short-horned grasshopper found throughout North American and southern Canada. They get almost 2″ long, with the females being slight larger than the males. They are found in open areas (meadows and fields).

They eat a variety of plants but don’t usually devastate crops as much as some other locust species do.

They make a distinctive noise when they fly…and often hover. They look like some strange kind of butterfly when they are on the move.