1. PHOTO GALLERY

 

2. BEHAVIOUR

 

3. APPEARANCE

This species arrived in the Netherlands around 1980 and its original spreading has been related to hicking on motorized vehicles. According to Waarneming.nl² this species has spread throughout the Netherlands.

4. DeterminatiON

This grasshopper is easily recognizable:

1. a white-yellow stripe across head, thorax and abdomen
2. seen from above the thorax has two brown spots near the lateral edge
3. the front wings are very short and have clearly visible structure on them
4. the hind wings are shorter than the front wings and not visible
5. the head is pointy between the antennae

Genders can be recognized from:

            6. the female has an ovipositor
            7. the male has very long cerci with a point at the end

Species that look similar

This species resembles the Oak bushcricket (Meconema thalassinum), but that species has wings¹. The nymphs of these two species are similar and in this case too the wings are a differentiating factor as the wings of M. meridionale are reversed. The hind wings have a characteristic parallel artery pattern¹.

5. DIMENSIONS

(mm)	♂	♀
Length	11,0 – 13,0	11,5 – 16,0
Front wing	1,5 – 2,0	1,2 – 2,0

 

6. OBSERVATIONS

Combined observations over years:

jan

feb

mar

apr

may

jun

jul

aug

sep

oct

nov

dec

♂

1

♀

1

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Citation

Krischan, O.R., 2025. Meconema meridionale. Kerfdier, www.kerfdier.nl. Accessed on 30 April 2025.