Blue-winged grasshopper

The Blue-winged grasshopper is mottled grey or brown at rest, blending closely with bare, stony or sandy ground, and its forewings are crossed by pale bands. A ridge on the upper edge of the hind femur drops sharply behind its midpoint. Only in flight does it reveal turquoise-blue hindwings bordered by a broad dark band, a flash of color that disappears the instant it lands and folds its wings.

Adults fly from June to October over dry, open ground such as heathland, dunes, quarries and railway ballast, where sparse plant cover keeps the soil warm. They feed mainly on grasses and low plants but will also take dead insects, and eggs laid in loose soil overwinter before hatching the following spring.