Utilization of Food Plants by the Migratory Grasshopper, Melanoplus Bilituratus (Walker)1 (Orthoptera: Acrididae), with Some Observations on the Nutritional Value of the Plants2

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Abstract
Grasshoppers were fed individually on either wheat, western wheat grass, or oats for 40 days after hatching. Survival was highest on wheat and lowest on western wheat grass, and the rate of development was equal on these two and lowest on oats. The amounts of wheat and western wheat grass consumed were approximately equal and were twice that of oats. The final weights of the grasshoppers fed on oats were about one-third less than the weights on the other two foods. Utilization for the 40-day period was 32% on each of the three foods, but during the first 5 days it was 81% on western wheat grass, 65% on wheat, and 54% on oats. The efficiency of conversion of food to body tissue was 38% for oats, 32% for wheat, and 27% for western wheat grass, and was negatively correlated with the amount of food utilized. The various criteria indicate that wheat is a good food; that oats is a poor food only because the grasshoppers do not eat enough; and that western wheat grass is a poor food, possibly because of a deficiency in nutrients.

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