Schistocerca nitens
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Schistocerca nitens is a species of grasshopper known by several names, including vagrant grasshopper and gray bird grasshopper. It is a close relative of the desert locust, which is in the same genus. This grasshopper is native to southern North America including Mexico and the south-western United States from California to Texas. Vagrants are occasionally found in Colorado, Utah, and Oklahoma, where the winters are too cold for them to survive, otherwise. It is also present in parts of Central and South America. It lives in many habitats including desert, woodland, and lower elevation mountainous areas. This species is known as a pest on ornamental plants and many types of crop plants.
Adult females are 60–70 millimetres (2.4–2.8 in) while the smaller males are 40–50 millimetres (1.6–2.0 in). They are mottled in coloration, with colors including grays, browns, and yellows. A stripe runs from their head to their thorax.
Juveniles, called nymphs, are usually a lighter brown or green, with a dark stripe extending down below the eye. The grasshopper becomes sexually mature at 3 to 4 months of age. Any stage of its life cycle can be seen at any time of... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bahía de Loreto National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Palo Verde National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Ciudad Juárez | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | Torreón | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 8 | San Luis Potosí | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Gray Bird Grasshopper sighting in Cumbres de Monterrey National Park on a given day, based on 44 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 67th most-seen of the 431 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July to May
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Gray Bird Grasshopper in Cumbres de Monterrey National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June, the lowest month.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Gray Bird Grasshopper sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Gray Bird Grasshopper sightings, Cumbres de Monterrey National Park ranks 6th at about 10%. The best odds are in Bahía de Loreto National Park (Mexico, about 30%), Saguaro National Park (United States, about 20%) and Big Bend National Park (United States, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Gray Bird Grasshopper is recorded against all the insects logged in Cumbres de Monterrey National Park (44 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
