Download Grasshopper Dissection Neil 2012

Name ______________________________________Period________
Grasshopper Anatomy
Prelab Questions (use your book or other references)
1. Grasshoppers belong to the Kingdom _______________, the Phylum __________, the Subphylum
________________ and the Class _____________
2. Use what you know about classification to determine which one of the following pairs is MOST closely related. (Circle)
Grasshopper & Crayfish | Grasshopper & Spider | Grasshopper & Housefly
3. What kind of skeleton does the grasshopper possess?
External Anatomy
5. Locate the segments on the abdomen. How many segments does your grasshopper have? _______ Compare
this number to other grasshoppers. Do they all have the same number of segments? ________
6. Note the thorax. It is the center area to which all appendages attach. The hard covering of the thorax is called the
carapace.
7. Locate the antenna. Is the antennae branched or unbranched? ________ How many antennae are there?
____________
8. Locate the compound eyes. How many eyes does the grasshopper have? ______
9. Locate the grasshopper’s legs.
To what part of the body are they attached? ____________ (head, thorax, or abdomen).
How many pairs of legs does the grasshopper have? ____________
How many jumping legs are there ? __________ How many walking legs? _______
10. Notice the claws at the end of the legs. Do both sets of legs have these claws? ___
11. Locate the wings of the grasshopper. There are actually two sets of wings- one on the top and one underneath.
The top wing is called the forewing and the bottom wing is called the hindwing. Which wing seems the most fragile?
________________________
12. Turn the grasshopper over and view the mouthparts.
Find the outside most plate (it’s like the upper lip) which is called the labrum, its opposite is the lower plate (lower lip)
called the labium.
The moveable mouthparts that look like antennae are the maxilla. Locate them.
The mandible is located under the maxilla and is used for chewing.
open from top to bottom or from side to side? ________
Does the mandible
Label the labrum, maxilla, and mandibles on the picture.
Also label the compound eyes and antennae.
13. Raise the wings to find the disk shaped tympanum underneath. The tympanum
functions as an eardrum. How many tympanum are found on the grasshopper? ____
14. Look at the abdomen and fine the row of holes along it; these are the spiracles and they function in respiration
(breathing). How many spiracles do you count? _______
15. The sex of the grasshopper can be determined by looking at the lest segment of the abdomen. Females have a
large pair of pointy structures called the ovipositor, which are used to deposit eggs into soil. Is you grasshopper a male or
a female? ___________
GRASSHOPPER COLORING
Walking Legs
Jumping Leg
Claws
Carapace
Hindwing
Forewing
Tympanum
Spiracles
Antenna
Abdomen
Labrum
Head
Thorax
*Choose a color for each structure, color both box and structure
INTERNAL DISSECTION
3. Beginning at the tip of the abdomen, make an incision (lengthwise) with scissors in the body covering slightly to the left of the middorsal line and along the entire length of the grasshopper. Make a similar cut on the ventral side, as well as up the front of the head.
Keep the inner scissors point just inside the body covering to avoid damaging the internal organs. If the specimen is a mature female,
the interior spaces may be filled largely with slender eggs in the ovaries. Remove some of these if necessary to view the organs, as
directed by your instructor.
4. Locate the following organ systems
1. Integument and exoskeleton
2. Muscular - In studying the other systems, note the many muscles, especially those connecting the wings and the legs.
3. Digestive system - remove some of the lateral muscles and trachea as necessary without injuring other organs. The digestive system
parts below begin at the anterior end and move toward
the back.


Grasshopper- digestive system
Label the parts of the digestive system and
Give the function of each.
Mouth
Esophagus
Crop
Stomach
6 Gastric Caeca (digestive glands) - producing
enzymes which are secreted into the stomach to aid
digestion.
Intestine - the anterior portion tapers into a slender
portion, which becomes the enlarged rectum.
Anus
A. Label the following on the picture above B. Give the function of each C. Explain how it differs from Humans:
4. Circulatory system - heart
B.
C.
5. Respiratory system – tracheae, bellows
B.
C.
6. Excretory system - Malpighian tubules
B.
C.
7. Nervous system - brain, nerve cord
B.
C.
8. Reproductive system - testes, or ovaries, oviduct
B.
C.
9. Draw and Explain: What is the function of the Malpighian tubules + what part of the human body are they analogous?
10. How are the respiratory and excretory systems of the grasshopper adapted to life on land?