United States Rangeland Management Community Portal

The Rangeland Community Management Portal is a comprehensive hub created by ASU's Global Locust Initiative and APHIS's Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Arizona to support land managers, researchers, and community members in understanding and addressing rangeland grasshopper and Mormon cricket management.

The portal features an interactive map that allows users to navigate directly to state-specific pages, each enriched with local information on species and regionally relevant resources. Detailed species profiles that highlight the biology, ecology, and management of the top U.S. rangeland pests. Covering 17 western states—Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming—the portal emphasizes the ecological and economic importance of these native insects. While grasshoppers and Mormon crickets are integral to rangeland ecosystems, under favorable conditions their populations can explode to outbreak levels, directly competing with livestock for forage. A swarm of grasshoppers equivalent to 30 pounds can consume as much forage as a 600-pound steer, rapidly depleting the most desirable plant species and straining rangeland resources, particularly during drought.

By combining scientific knowledge, management information, and locally relevant insights, the Rangeland Community Management Portal helps equips stakeholders with the tools they need to understand grasshopper outbreaks—helping protect both rangeland productivity and rural livelihoods.

Visit the APHIS homepage for rangeland grasshopper and mormon cricket

Significant grasshopper species in the United States

• 
  Big-headed grasshopper (Aulocara elliotti)
• 
  Clear-winged grasshopper (Camnula pellucida)
• 
  Four-spotted grasshopper (Phlibostroma quadrimaculatum)
• 
  Kiowa grasshopper (Trachyrhachys kiowa)
• 
  Little spur-throated grasshopper (Melanoplus infantilis)
• 
  Migratory grasshopper (Melanoplus sanguinipes)
• 
  Mormon cricket (Anabrus simplex)
• 
  Obscure grasshopper (Opeia obscura)
• 
  Striped grasshopper (Amphitornus coloradus)
• 
  Two-striped grasshopper (Melanoplus bivittatus)
• 
  Western spotted-winged grasshopper (Cordillacris occipitalis)
• 
  White cross grasshopper (Aulocara femoratum)
• 
  White-whiskered grasshopper (Ageneotettix deorum)
• 
  High Plains grasshopper (Dissosteira longipennis)
• 
  Pallid-winged grasshopper (Trimerotropis pallidipennis)

Species of management concern in the United States

Rangeland grasshoppers are ground-dwelling insects with powerful hind legs for leaping and, in many species, wings that enable long-distance flight. They are sometimes called short-horned grasshoppers to distinguish them from katydids, which have notably longer antennae. Unlike grasshoppers, Mormon crickets are flightless katydids. However, they can travel vast distances by walking or jumping, often migrating in massive groups numbering in the millions or even billions. The Mormon cricket is the only katydid species in the U.S. known to form outbreak populations.

Large outbreaks of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets occur roughly every decade, though local populations fluctuate based on environmental conditions and other factors. Check the National Drought Mitigation Center or the Drought Mitigation Map for U.S. drought conditions .

To request assistance with grasshopper or Mormon cricket control click here

When a prompt response to a developing grasshopper outbreak is required, a Federal agency or a State agriculture department (on behalf of a State, a tribe, a local government, or a private group or individual) may request assistance from the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to suppress rangeland grasshopper populations in the 17 Western States.

The objectives of the PHIS Rangeland Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Suppression Program are to 1) conduct surveys of grasshopper populations in 17 Western States; 2) provide technical assistance to land managers; and 3) when requests are made and funds permit, suppress economically damaging grasshopper and Mormon cricket outbreaks on Federal, Tribal, State, and private rangeland. APHIS evaluates several factors to decide whether grasshopper suppression is necessary, including the pest species involved, the maturity of the pest population, the timing of treatment, the cost-effectiveness of the action, and ecological impacts.

Historically, poisoning was the primary method for controlling grasshoppers on cultivated lands, mainly targeting the Melanoplus and Schistocerca. Poison bait formulas were commonly made using bran, sawdust, liquid sodium arsenite (arsenic), and water. Another widely used bait, effective against other pests like cutworms and crickets, consists of bran, white arsenic or other toxic agents, water, and optional molasses or citrus additives for increased attractiveness.

Today, chemical insecticides remain a primary tool for managing grasshopper populations. APHIS has been actively involved in treating millions of acres across Western states to suppress grasshopper outbreaks. Carbaryl and malathion are widely used insecticides effective against grasshoppers. Diflubenzuron is also used at times and is an insect growth regulator.

HopperWiki species of concern classification

IMMDL top 12

The APHIS Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Arizona considers the above 12 grasshoppers, plus the Mormon cricket, to be the top species of management concern in the Western United States. Informally they are refered to as the "dirty dozen" and are classified in HopperWiki as "IMMDL top 12".

APHIS rangeland priority pest

The other tag "APHIS rangeland priority pest" is used to represent a wider list of grasshopper pest species that were cited in the USDA numerical ranking report by Richard Dysart. He reviewed 69 scientific papers published between 1924 and 1993, gathering expert opinions on the pest status of 377 grasshopper species. Each mention of a species in a paper was categorized as a serious pest, minor pest, innocuous, possibly beneficial, or beneficial, resulting in 2,731 total rankings.

To compare species, Dysart assigned point values to each category—serious (+2), minor (+1), innocuous (0), possibly beneficial (–1), and beneficial (–2)—and calculated a total score for each species by multiplying the number of mentions in each category by its point value. Species with higher total scores were ranked as more harmful, while those with lower or negative scores were considered neutral or beneficial. In cases of tied scores, the species more frequently cited as a serious or minor pest was given a higher rank.

No results found. If you have expertise or materials on this topic that you are willing to contribute, please get in touch with an administrator.

Featured identification guides

• 
  ARS grasshopper species fact sheets
• 
  Grasshoppers of the Western U.S.
• 
  Montana.gov Orthoptera Field Guides
• 
  Pest grasshoppers in Oregon
• 
  Field Guide to Common Western Grasshoppers
• 
  Grasshopper Integrated Pest Management User Handbook
• 
  Grasshoppers of Colorado
• 
  The Grasshoppers of Nebraska

Featured regulatory documents

• 
  AUSDA-APHIS insecticide western states Xerces society ruling
• 
  Final Environmental Assessment for Eight Oregon Counties
• 
  APHIS Plant Protection Act 2004

Identification resources in the United States

Name	Year published	Resource link	Language	Author	Year published
A Manual of the Grasshoppers of New Mexico	1993	View	English	New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service, D.B. Richman, D.C. Lightfoot, C.A. Sutherland, DJ. Ferguson	1993
ARS grasshopper species fact sheets	1994		English	Agricultural Research Services, United States Department of Agriculture	1994
Common Grasshoppers of Montana Cropland and Rangeland		View	English	Montana State University
Community-wide grasshopper control	2020	View	English	Utah State University, Marion Murray	2020
Crickets and grasshoppers in Utah	1931	View	English	Utah State University	1931
Differentiation, ecology, and distribution of immature slant-faced grasshoppers (Acridinae) in Kansas	1967	View	English	Kansas State University, Merlyn A. Brusven	1967
Eastern lubber grasshopper	2025		English	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	2025
Field Guide to Common Western Grasshoppers	2002		English	United States Department of Agriculture, Robert E. Pfadt	2002
Field guide to grasshoppers of economic importance in Nevada		View	English	University of Nevada
Grasshopper control in gardens and small acreages	2013	View	English	Colorado State University, W.S. Cranshaw, R. Hammon	2013
Grasshopper investigations on Montana rangelands	1952	View	English	Montana State University, Norman L. Anderson, John C. Wright	1952
Grasshoppers (Acrididae) of Colorado	1982		English	Colorado State University, John Capinera, TS Sechrist	1982
Grasshoppers and their control		View	English	Texas A&M University, Carl D. Patrick
Grasshoppers of the Choctaw Nation in Southeast Oklahoma	2021	View	English	Alex J. Harman, W. Wyatt Hoback, Tom A. Royer	2021
Grasshoppers of the Western United States		View	English	United States Department of Agriculture
Grasshoppers their habits and damage	1964	View	English	United States Department of Agriculture	1964
Hopper helper		View	English	Wendal Cushing
Idaho Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Control Program			English
Identification guides for pest grasshoppers in Nebraska	2009		English	Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Ron Seymour, Gary Hein, Jack Campbell, Jim Kalisch	2009
iNaturalist		View	English
Insect answers	1990	View	English	Daniel Suomi, Gary Thomasson, Dave Keim	1990
Key to Wyoming grasshoppers			English	University of Wyoming, Timothy J. McNary
Montana.gov Orthoptera Field Guides		View	English
Mormon cricket biology and management poster		View	English	University of Wyoming, APHIS Plant Protection and Quarantine
Orthoptera of Northern Great Plains	2007		English	North Dakota State University	2007
Pacific Northwest Pest Management Handbook			English
Pest grasshoppers in Oregon	2024	View	English	Oregon Department of Agriculture, Thomas Valente, J. Buck Dunlap	2024
Pest Grasshoppers of the West	2005	View	English	University of Wyoming	2005
Rangeland Grasshopper Management	1993		English	University of Wyoming, Jeffrey Lockwood, Scott Schell	1993
Singing Insects of North America		View	English
The banded-wing grasshoppers of Idaho	1967	View	English	George B. Hewitt, William F. Barr	1967
The grasshoppers and other orthoptera of Arizona	1942	View	English	University of Arizona, E. Ball, E. R. Tinkham, Robert Flock, C. T. Vorhies	1942
The grasshoppers of Kansas, part I	1915	View	English	University of Kansas, P.W. Claassen	1915
The grasshoppers of Nebraska	2009	View	English	Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Mathew L. Brust, Wyatt Hoback, Robert J. Wright	2009
The Grasshoppers of the Western U.S. Lucid mobile app	2016		English	APHIS PPQ Science & Technology Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory (Phoenix Station), United States Department of Agriculture, Center for Plant Health Science and Technology of the USDA	2016
The more destructive grasshoppers of Kansas	1897	View	English	University of Kansas, J.S. Parks	1897
The Orthoptera of Michigan	2003	View	English	Roger G. Bland	2003
UofA School & Home Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Newsletter Newsletter Grasshoppers	2023	View	English	University of Arizona, Dawn H. Gouge, Tom J. Getts, Tim W. Stock, John F. Connett, Micah Gay	2023
Utah pests fact sheet	2008	View	English	Utah State University, Edward W. Evans, Erin W. Hodgson	2008

APHIS historical grasshopper archives

USDA’s wealth of resources, accumulated over decades in filing cabinets and hard drives, has previously been difficult for stakeholders to access or use effectively. Through this collaboration between ASU's Global Locust Initiative and APHIS's Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Arizona, those materials have been curated and integrated into the portal below where you can filter and view documents by keyword themes. The documents on this portal include records of grasshopper population surveys, outbreak maps, descriptions of control efforts, impact assessments, and reports from trials and experiments with different management approaches. Together, these materials illustrate both the scale of the problem and the ongoing search for effective, sustainable strategies in grasshopper management across western rangelands.

Access the archive interface HERE or by clicking on the image below. You will need to create a free account with Airtable if view the data. If you need any assistance please reach out to [email protected]

The Rangeland Community Management Portal is a collaborative effort between ASU's Global Locust Initiative and APHIS's Insect Management and Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Arizona. This collaboration is developing an interactive resource that connects users to biological and management information for the top pest grasshopper species in the western United States.