Trimerotropis pallidipennis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The pallid-winged grasshopper (Trimerotropis pallidipennis) is a common grasshopper of the family Acrididae, native to the deserts of western North America along with South America, ranging from British Columbia to Argentina. They are more active during the summer months, and their pale, mottled coloration makes them hard to see against surfaces such as the granite often found in the gravel of dry river beds. They grow to be 37 millimetres (1.5 in). The behavior of the pallid-winged grasshopper is apparently determined by temperature, with foraging occurring at temperatures of 24–32 °C (75–90 °F) and mating at 30–40 °C (86–104 °F).
Like many band-winged grasshoppers in the subfamily Oedipodinae, males perform crepitation flights, producing crackling sounds with their wings when disturbed or during courtship. Males also stridulate in courtship, rubbing the hind femur against the forewing to make a trilling sound.
Populations of the pallid-winged grasshopper occasionally irrupt to damaging numbers. Between 1952 and 1980, there were six outbreaks in Arizona, only one of which lasted more than one year. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Death Valley National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Guadalupe Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Zion National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Nahuel Huapi National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Ciudad Juárez | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 5 | La Paz | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 6 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Torreón | 🇲🇽 México |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pallid-Winged Grasshopper sighting in Mexico City on a given day, based on 20 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 268th most-seen of the 557 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Pallid-Winged Grasshopper in Mexico City on a given day, against under 5% in May to March, the lowest months. That is one of Mexico City's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain against 150 mm in July.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pallid-Winged Grasshopper sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
14th of 18
Of the 18 cities where we can rate Pallid-Winged Grasshopper sightings, Mexico City ranks 14th at under 5%. The best odds are in Mesa (United States, about 30%), Las Vegas (United States, about 30%) and Phoenix (United States, about 20%).
Same family: Acrididae
The closest relatives of the Pallid-Winged Grasshopper that you can see in Mexico City (family Acrididae, Short-horned Grasshoppers) are Differential Grasshopper (about 20%) and Gray Bird Grasshopper (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pallid-Winged Grasshopper is recorded against all the insects logged in Mexico City (20 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
