Hunting an exotic pink grasshopper in a British garden | Sciences

An animal ready for a Barbie movie? An amateur photographer was pruning flowers in his garden when he was suddenly surprised by a stranger pink bug. The unusually colorful grasshopper was peaceful among the leaves and, after a few photos, has now gone viral on social networks. How rare is this creature?

Gary Phillips was impressed by the bright pink color of a locust He found him while cutting flowers at his home in Anglesey, UK, on ​​July 3. “I had to focus properly on what I saw and realized it was a pink grasshopper which I thought was strange,” the photographer told the BBC. It is common to see these insects with their usual green color in these places; However, there are exceptions.

Pink grasshoppers: what is the reason for their color?

It is estimated that the pink color of these grasshoppers is due to sexual knowledge, a mutation in the mechanisms for producing the pigments that give it color. This is how biologist Cesar Gonzalez explains it in an article in which he points out that this anomaly can occur in reptiles, insects, fish, amphibians, and some mammals.

excitement in locust It causes them to “overproduce red particles,” which leads to weirdness pink coloring. In addition, the specialist determines that it is a random and rare condition.

At the same time, the mutation is due to a gene that can be passed down through successive generations, as explained to the BBC by Paul Hetherington, of the Buglife organization, which promotes the conservation of this type of insect.

Hard to reach

Grasshoppers are usually green in order to blend in with the leaves where they live. So, offering pink puts them in a vulnerable position before they can be Predators Such as large insects, small reptiles and birds. This, according to Gonzalez, would be a reason why they are not easily found by humans, despite the fact that their abundance has not yet been determined.

Likewise, it is indicated that the grasshopper most likely to develop this condition is the species Euconocephalus thunbergipopular in Devon towards the south of England.

On the other hand, Hetherington asserts that, despite what most specialists point out, observing these insects is not too difficult during the summer months. “If you look closely for them in any meadow, the chances of seeing them are really very high,” he told the BBC.

A change in the color of the plants, during the change of season, would increase the chances of the insect surviving, allowing it to be found if it was sought with special care.