Bug FAQAustralian Yellow-winged Locust
Gastrimargus musicus · Order: Orthoptera · Family: Acrididae
Also called: Yellow-winged Locust
Adult females are 35 to 50 mm long and males 25 to 35 mm. They show yellow hind wings only in flight and make a loud clicking sound. When they swarm they turn dark brown, but in northern Australian savannas they are usually solitary.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Yellow hind wings appear only while flying and are accompanied by a loud clicking or crackling sound. Swarming adults become dark brown in colour.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Females measure 35 to 50 mm; males are smaller at 25 to 35 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
In northern Australian savannas the species lives alone rather than in groups.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The yellow-winged locust is a common grasshopper throughout Australia.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be mistaken for the Australian plague locust, but it is stouter and larger.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Acrididae)
Differential GrasshopperMelanoplus differentialisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Two-striped GrasshopperMelanoplus bivittatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Carolina GrasshopperDissosteira carolinaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common Field GrasshopperChorthippus brunneus
Egyptian Bird GrasshopperAnacridium aegyptium
Gray Bird GrasshopperSchistocerca nitensDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastrimargus_musicus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.