Two-spotted Grouse Locust vs Peppered Moth of New Zealand

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Two-spotted Grouse Locust Peppered Moth of New Zealand
Scientific Name Paratettix mexicanus Cleora scriptaria
Order Orthoptera Lepidoptera
Family Tetrigidae Geometridae
Size 7-10 mm 30-40 mm wingspan
Habitat Rivers & Streams Forests
Diet Herbivores Herbivores
Regions North America, Central America Oceania (New Zealand)
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Two-spotted Grouse Locust

A tiny pygmy grasshopper commonly found at the muddy margins of ponds and streams across the Americas. It often has two pale spots on its pronotum.

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Did You Know?

It spends most of its time at the water's edge and can leap onto the water surface and skate across it to escape danger.

Peppered Moth of New Zealand

An endemic New Zealand geometrid moth known as the kawakawa looper, whose caterpillars feed on kawakawa and other native plants. The caterpillars are expert twig mimics, holding themselves rigid at an angle from the branch. Adults have speckled grey wings.

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Did You Know?

The kawakawa looper caterpillar is such an effective twig mimic that it can be almost impossible to detect on a branch, even when you know it is there.