The Variegated Grasshopper

This grasshopper's distinct colours make it stand out prominently with a bold statement that says, "I am toxic and taste really awful.
When I was young, during break at school, we would go grasshopper hunting, and that's when I knew this warning was true. Once you catch this grasshopper, it will vomit a dark, smelly liquid that will make you let it go.
Even some birds will avoid this grasshopper due to its distastefulness, but if a bird is stubborn enough to grab it, the grasshopper would use the spikes behind its powerful hind legs to kick and thrash about with force. At the slightest opportunity, they break off and hop away, spread their red coloured wings and fly off if their wings are fully developed.

It was while writing this post with the help of Google Lens that I was able to identify this grasshopper as the Variegated Grasshopper, also known as the Painted Grasshopper. Locally, this grasshopper is called Atak-tak Ekpo which translates to Ghost's Grasshopper or the grasshopper of the dead. It is better identified taxonomically as Zonocerus variegatus.

Like most other grasshoppers, they are herbivorous, using their biting and chewing mouth parts to feed on plants' leaves or stems, and sometimes flowers or seeds.
These grasshoppers are mostly solitary insects, but sometimes, they behave as if they were responding to a call to launch into swamp mode, becoming even more destructive.
Just imagine a swarm of locusts numbering into hundreds of thousands, such can devour large farmlands in minutes, destroying valuable crops and spiralling farmers and communities into hunger and poverty. This may explain why it is the grasshopper of the dead.

Below is a video I made of a Variegated Grasshopper. I found it while excavating and landscaping the perimeter at the construction site. They look shy but will not scare easily except when threatened. It's as if they say to themselves, "he has seen my colour and will not dare touch me", but when you touch, they are like, "Oh my, he touched, I better run now", and it hops off.

Have you had an encounter with this insect? Will you agree if I say they look beautiful with all those colours?

You are invited to have your say in the comment section below and I am sending special invitations to @bossj23, @nspidoz, @ninapenda, and @josepha

Media Credit

Composer	@manuelhooks
Photographer	@manuelhooks
Captured with	iPhone 8
Captured Date	Tue. 16 Sep
Posting Date	Fri. 19 Sep
	(@) 2025