Javanese Grasshopper

Valanga nigricornis · Order: Orthoptera · Family: Acrididae

Also called: Javanese Bird Grasshopper

Damages trees, gardens or crops. It can seriously damage oil palm and rubber trees.

Source: Wikipedia

Javanese Grasshopper
Photo: unknown, CC0

Adults are yellow-brown to green with bluish-black spots and rose-red hind wings that show in flight. Males are 45 to 55 mm long, females 15 to 75 mm, and they live in forest clearings, on trees and shrubs.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Males measure 45 to 55 mm and females 15 to 75 mm in length.

Source: Wikipedia

How to get rid of it

Trap cropping and planting Pueraria phaseoloides can help control it.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

It lives mainly in woodlands, especially in forest clearings and on trees and shrubs.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Both nymphs and adults feed on tree foliage and are active in daylight.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

There is one generation per year; eggs hatch into nymphs that pass through six or seven instars before becoming winged adults.

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

In Java, eggs stay dormant through the dry season and hatch after six to eight months; in Thailand they hatch after about two months, grow in the wet season, and remain immature in the dry season.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Javanese Grasshopper photo 3
Photo: Steven Bodzin, CC BY
Javanese Grasshopper photo 4
Photo: Franz Anthony, CC BY
Javanese Grasshopper photo 5
Photo: gery-dupas, CC BY-SA
Javanese Grasshopper photo 6
Photo: Franz Anthony, CC BY

Questions people ask

How can I control Javanese grasshoppers in my garden?

Using trap crops or planting Pueraria phaseoloides can reduce their numbers.

Source: Wikipedia

What plants do Javanese grasshoppers damage?

They feed on the foliage of oil palm and rubber trees, causing serious damage in plantations.

Source: Wikipedia

When do Javanese grasshopper eggs hatch?

In Java they hatch after six to eight months of dormancy; in Thailand they hatch after about two months.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Acrididae)

Differential GrasshopperDifferential GrasshopperMelanoplus differentialisDamages trees, gardens or cropsTwo-striped GrasshopperTwo-striped GrasshopperMelanoplus bivittatusDamages trees, gardens or cropsCarolina GrasshopperCarolina GrasshopperDissosteira carolinaDamages trees, gardens or cropsCommon Field GrasshopperCommon Field GrasshopperChorthippus brunneusEgyptian Bird GrasshopperEgyptian Bird GrasshopperAnacridium aegyptiumGray Bird GrasshopperGray Bird GrasshopperSchistocerca nitensDamages trees, gardens or crops

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valanga_nigricornis

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.

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