A common sight is the Common Field Grasshopper like the one pictured here in Saltmills.
Their colour can vary from green through brown, to almost black. More often heard than seen, they chirp away in the vegetation or on rocks and bare ground. They call in short repetitive fizzes or in longer spells sounding like the freewheeling of a bike. These sounds are made by rubbing their long legs against their wings.
They mainly eat grasses though some types are not as fussy. Certain species of short-horned grasshoppers in response to overcrowding these usually solitary, shy insects gather together, change colour, grow powerful muscles and take to the skies; looking devour leaves, stems, flowers, fruits, seeds and bark. In this state grasshoppers are called locusts and have proven to be a scourge since biblical times. An adult desert locust can eat about 2 g in a day with some swarms estimated at 3 trillion insects this amounts to approximately 6 million tonnes of material.
On the upside, they are a valuable food source to some people, especially the far-east where large ones are roasted, skewered and sold at the local market. Crunch.