Migratory locust
| Migratory locust | |
|---|---|
| Female migratory locust | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Orthoptera |
| Suborder: | Caelifera |
| Family: | Acrididae |
| Subfamily: | Oedipodinae |
| Tribe: | Locustini |
| Genus: | Locusta Linnaeus, 1758 |
| Species: | L. migratoria |
| Binomial name | |
| Locusta migratoria | |
| Synonyms | |
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The migratory locust (Locusta migratoria) is the most widespread locust species, and the only species in the genus Locusta. It occurs throughout Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Because of the vast geographic area it occupies, which comprises many different ecological zones, numerous subspecies have been described. However, not all experts agree on the validity of some of these subspecies. While it reaches plague proportions in drier areas, it is solitary in northern Australia savannas.
Many other species of grasshopper with gregarious and possibly migratory behaviour are referred to as 'locusts' in the vernacular, including the widely distributed desert locust.
At 6.5 Gbp, the migratory locust possesses one of the largest known insect genomes.