MORSE: ORTIIOPTEUA OF NEW ENGLAND. 505 
Though cxceedinp;ly nil morons and quite variable in size and 
coloring, no marked varieties occur in this species. The crown 
of the head and disk of the pronotum are occasionally rose red in 
color, in both young and adults, and very rarely the hind tibiae 
are of some other color than red, e.j/., yellowish, greenish, or blue, — 
a pattern more often met with in arid situations in the West. 
In New England, however, a Locust with hind tibiae otherwise 
than red may be regarded as almost certain to be of another 
species than this. 
The Red-legged Locust is probably the commonest, most 
nearly ubiquitous "Grasshopper" found in New England, inhabit- 
ing the entire district, and likely to occur in any plat of grass or 
sedge from seashore to mountain top, at least in the southern 
and western half. In August, 1913, it was decidedly less abun- 
dant and less generally distributed in northern and eastern Maine 
than M. m. atlanis, but whether this condition is usual I am un- 
able to say. 
Its adaptability to different conditions of environment is 
marked, as is shown by its widespread distribution over the 
greater part of the continent; yet it undeniably shows a prefer- 
ence for the damper parts of open fields, pastures, and wild 
lands, as compared to the drier portions usually frequented 
by M. m. atlanis. 
It matures later than most members of the genus, usually not 
until late July, and is active until snow falls. Immature 
examples may be found at least until September, there being 
apparently great variation in the time of hatching. 
The destruction caused from time to time in New England by 
Locusts is generally ascribed to this species and usually with 
good reason, though the Lesser Migratory Locust (M. m. atlanis) 
is frequently concerned, and the Clear-winged Locust {Camnula 
pellucida) is open to suspicion, particularly in northern Vermont 
and New Hampshire. Less often the Two-striped Locust (Af. 
bivittatus) becomes destructive locally. 
