Serendipitous Nature Study of a Grasshopper

The other day, we were sitting at the kitchen table when we spotted a very large grasshopper on the window. There ensued a flurry of action and discussion which resulted in me going outside with a glass jar and capturing the bugger.

My oldest and youngest were completely entranced by this strange creature, but my middle daughter took one look and then went calmly to the other side of the room. She was a little freaked out by it.

We got down the HANDBOOK OF NATURE STUDY, and I read them everything the book had to say about grasshoppers. I guess if we had been more familiar with them, we could have identified which type of grasshopper this was, but we had to be content with the information she provided in the general grasshopper section.

We were able to view the different parts of the grasshopper. Because this creature was so large, we were able to clearly see the different parts of its leg listed on page 339, the two sets of wings, the simple eye and the compound eye.

We totally agreed with Ms. Comstock's assessment that "the grasshopper's face has a droll expression; would that some caricaturist would analyze it! It is a long face, and the compound eyes placed high upon it give it the look of solemnity"

We tried to feed it, but it wouldn't "bite."

It was fascinating to see, and for me, a little disconcerting. A grasshopper that big could make short work of my garden by itself.


You can see what others are learning from the HANDBOOK OF NATURE STUDY at The Handbook of Nature Study blog. Barb has an excellent Blog Carnival every month. I learn so much from my fellow homeschoolers and their nature studies.

I am submitting this for her blog carnival.