The two-striped grasshopper, Melanoplus bivittatu, occurs widely in North America inhabiting tall, lush, herbaceous vegetation. Dense populations may reside in tallgrass prairie, wet meadows, roadsides, ditch banks, and crop borders. The two-striped grasshopper is a major crop pest causing much damage to small grains, alfalfa, and corn. During outbreaks, it may destroy crops completely. A population of 10 adults per square yard in a corn field will defoliate the crop. Sorghum plants over six inches tall, however, are nearly immune to attack. Experiments indicate that in feeding on spring wheat the two-striped grasshopper wastes six times as much foliage as it eats. In urban areas, the two-striped grasshopper is a common pest of flowers and vegetables. It is a large grasshopper. Collected from a roadside in Platte County, WY, males averaged 549 mg live weight and females 1,086 mg (dry weight: males 166 mg and females 341 mg).