“On the afternoon of 19th October 2014, I was admiring the fauna along a forest stream when I chanced upon a pair of grasshoppers (Oxya japonica) mating upon stream-side vegetation (below).
“With the male’s abdomen intimately curled under the female’s, their embrace lasted at least ten minutes. Throughout the mating procedure, the hind legs of the female were trembling and twitching frequently, perhaps indications of delight derived from this prolonged process.
“A video clip of the mating pair (with female’s limbs quivering) may be viewed here:
“Soon after mating, the male simply hopped away, while the female remained on the same perch. All that mating must have made her hungry, as she almost immediately began to devour the green stem in front of her (below).
“A video clip of the female feeding may be viewed here:
“This female will need all the nutrition she can get, as she prepares for the next phase of egg laying.”
Dr. Leong Tzi Ming
Singapore
1st February 2015
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