He was on the shower curtain which I whisked a bit and he fell to the bathroom floor, not moving during my shower. So I photographed him and turned out the light. The next day he was on the shower curtain again and I carried him out to the garden this time. I have a big stack of insects books but little in any of them to help identify grasshoppers other than the “Giant Grasshopper” which tourists love. So I’ve just added this one more “Unidentified Grasshopper” to the 15+ in my Grasshopper Gallery. 🙂
One website says that there are 11,000 species of grasshoppers in Costa Rica plus over 6,000 species of Katydids which are often confused with grasshoppers, so I guess a field guide would be difficult to develop and pretty thick! 🙂
Unidentified Grasshopper, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
I’m seeing fewer grasshoppers now than just a few years ago, like with so many of the insects that are decreasing in numbers or going extinct, even in species-rich Costa Rica (11,000+ species of grasshoppers). I don’t have an identity on this little fellow of about an inch long, but the first grasshopper in my yard in a long time! I would encourage you to read a book I just started titled Rebugging the Planet: The Remarkable Things that Insects (and Other Invertebrates) Do – And Why We Need to Love Them More by Vicki Hird. As humans continue to cut down the forests and pour concrete and insecticides over the earth we are systematically destroying the natural earth including creatures necessary for our own survival. This little book is a great starting point for some people to begin “re-wilding” the earth! Time is running out! And I also recommend the documentary series INSECT PLANET on Curiosity Stream.
Unidentified Tiny Grasshopper, Atenas, Costa Rica.
On my 4 km walk to town yesterday, on the one steep hill, I came across this sidewalk grasshopper in the featured photo above. (Actually a Cricket – See Comments below. I stand corrected!) 🙂
Sorry I can’t identify him – but that’s not expected here since we have 11,000 species of grasshoppers and crickets in Costa Rica as part of our more than 500,000 total insect species! — More bugs than the U.S. & Canada combined! 🙂 And oh so much fun! See my InsectsGallery or just my Grasshoppers Gallery to stay with today’s theme. I only have photos of 13 of the eleven thousand, so a ways to go in that collection! 🙂
Here’s a fun, educational YouTube Video about our grasshoppers with jokes about how some people in the world eat them, though not Ticos! They do not eat them here like some in Mexico and of course my past home of West Africa. I’ll just stick with photographing them! 🙂
Just another of the many daily encounters with nature while being retired in Costa Rica! Love it! 🙂
“Crowds of bees are giddy with clover Crowds of grasshoppers skip at our feet, Crowds of larks at their matins hang over, Thanking the Lord for a life so sweet.”
~Jean Ingelow
¡Pura Vida!
P.S.
I arrive at Hacienda Guachipelín in Rincón de la Vieja National Park mid-day today and may start posting at odd times as things happen on this new and exciting adventure! Or I may try to keep the discipline of one-a-day posted for release at 5 am, which I kind of like. Keep reading the blog for totally new photos and scenery this week. Pura vida!
Click the linked article for one of the most practical list of how to live cheap in Costa Rica – in short it is all about the life-style you choose and I can testify that living without a car not only saves lots of money but is easy and fun here! The article is by Christopher Howard in his “Live In Costa Rica” blog & website – the one who also does a great relocation tour coupled with the ARCR Seminar. Panama may be cheaper, but Costa Rica is a whole lot better! 🙂
Dobsonfly Hogar de Vida Campus, Atenas, Costa Rica
Common Grasshopper Hogar de Vida Campus, Atenas, Costa Rica
To read more about Dobsonfly: Wikipedia in 5 languages, but not Spanish!
To read more about Grasshoppers: Wikipedia in 5 languages, but not Spanish!
There are 11,000 known species of grasshoppers in the world and with more than 300.000 insect species in Costa Rica there has to be a lot of different kinds of grasshoppers here! 🙂
This is one of more than 11,000 species of grasshoppers in Costa Rica. I have yet found a good source of identification of grasshoppers, thus in my gallery only one has a name.
AND TRYING TO BE AN ESL TEACHER I was asked by a friend and English teacher at Colegio Liceo to lead an after-school “club” of 10 students going on a student exchange program for two weeks in the USA, to a Virginia suburb of DC. It is basically a conversational English class or group to help them be able to talk to people better on their trip. Last night was our first weekly hour meeting over the next three months and my neighbor George has agreed to help. He was a 5th-6th grade teacher in Arizona and is ESL Certified. He will have the class by himself Sept. 4 when I’m in the Caribe.
Last night we got introduced and learned the names, grade levels and interests of the 8 students that showed up (Grades 8-11). I had learning games on greetings, travel problem phrases, and restaurant phrases. For many of them their English vocabulary is worse than my Spanish vocabulary (which is minimal), so we quickly learned that we have a long ways to go for them to have normal conversations in the states. I’m creating my own lesson plans by researching online – not easy, but it worked out okay last night! As they left they each got a list of “76 English Phrases for Traveling with Ease,” which they are to study for next week. I also asked them to write down one American/English singer or band they liked to listen to. Next week I will put a piece of masking tape on each kid’s forehead with a singer/band name and they will have to figure out which one they have with yes/no questions. Then we will dive into the travel phrases. That lesson plan is not made yet. Next Monday I will try to get a group photo to share in my blog post.
