---
title: Grasshoppers
canonical: https://fernland.com.au/problem-solver/grasshoppers/
dateModified: 2026-08-07 09:31:52
summary: "Grasshoppers are chewing pests that can defoliate turf, seedlings and nursery stock, with periodic plague outbreaks across inland and southern Australia."
type: article
keywords: [Grasshoppers, Acrididae]
---

# Grasshoppers

> Grasshoppers are chewing pests that can defoliate turf, seedlings and nursery stock, with periodic plague outbreaks across inland and southern Australia.

*Acrididae*

Grasshoppers are medium to large jumping insects with strong hind legs, chewing mandibles and long antennae. Adults range from 2.5 to 5 cm depending on species, with the wingless grasshopper (Phaulacridium vittatum) and small plague grasshopper (Austroicetes cruciata) among the most economically significant in southern Australia. Colouring varies from brown and grey to green, often mottled to blend with pasture or turf. Most pest species have short, functional wings, though some are flightless as adults, relying on jumping to move between plants.

Nymphs resemble small, wingless versions of the adults and pass through several moults before reaching maturity. They are typically greyish-brown to green, 5 to 20 mm long depending on instar, and are found low in the canopy, in turf swards or amongst seedlings where they feed continuously. Eggs are laid in pods in the soil, often in undisturbed pasture, roadside verges or turf margins, and can remain dormant for extended periods before hatching en masse when conditions are favourable.

In Australian nursery, turf and landscape settings, grasshoppers are sporadic but sometimes severe pests. Outbreaks are strongly influenced by weather: a run of dry seasons that reduces natural egg mortality followed by a warm, moist spring often triggers a population surge. Numbers build through spring and summer, with nymphs hatching from overwintered egg pods and adults becoming most damaging from late spring into autumn.

Management relies on early detection of nymphs before they disperse and become highly mobile, since young nymphs are more susceptible to control measures and remain concentrated near hatching sites. Monitoring paddock and property margins, windbreaks and adjoining grassland is important, as these areas often harbour egg-laying sites and early nymph populations that move into production areas as vegetation dries off or is disturbed. Maintaining healthy, actively growing turf and stock improves tolerance to moderate feeding pressure.

## How to identify

- **Leaf and stem damage:** irregular notching or complete removal of leaf margins on nursery stock and seedlings; in turf, patchy or ragged close-cropped grazing rather than smooth, even mowing lines.
- **Rapid defoliation:** during outbreaks, whole rows of seedlings or sections of turf can be stripped of foliage within days, especially at pot or plant edges where nymphs congregate.
- **Visible insects:** adults and nymphs are usually seen directly, jumping or flying short distances when disturbed; check low in the turf canopy, along fence lines, in adjacent grassland and around pot bases in nursery beds during warm, still parts of the day.
- **Frass:** small dark faecal pellets on leaf surfaces or at the base of plants can confirm active feeding.
- **Field check:** walk through affected turf or garden beds in warm weather and watch for insects jumping ahead of your steps; inspecting adjoining unmanaged grassy areas can reveal nymph hatching sites before they move into managed areas.
- **Lookalikes:** crickets are similarly shaped but usually nocturnal, darker, and often found in soil cracks or under debris rather than openly feeding on foliage in daylight; caterpillar damage tends to leave more uniform, rounded feeding holes and silken webbing or frass strands rather than the ragged, mobile grazing pattern typical of grasshoppers.

## Registered products we stock

- [Eco-Neem Botanical Insecticide](https://fernland.com.au/eco-neem-botanical-insecticide/) — Organic Crop Protectants
- [Tempo Xtra Turf & Ornamental Insecticide](https://fernland.com.au/tempo-xtra-turf-ornamental-insecticide/) — Envu
- [Carbaryl 500 | Flowable Insecticide](https://fernland.com.au/carbaryl-500-flowable-insecticide/) — David Grays
- [Carbaryl Garden Insecticide](https://fernland.com.au/carbaryl-garden-insecticide/) — David Grays

## Image credits

- [Photo: Donald Hobern from Canberra, Australia via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phaulacridium_vittatum_1.jpg)
- [Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phaulacridium_vittatum_(4590719032).jpg)
- [Photo: division, CSIRO via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CSIRO_ScienceImage_40_An_Australian_plague_locust_Chortoicetes_terminifera.jpg)
- [Photo: Bidgee via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chortoicetes_terminifera_adult.jpg)