The Pink Grasshopper

Young Daniel Tate of England sure wasn’t expecting this surprise while hunting for grasshoppers at a wildlife event near Sidmouth, Devon with his grandfather.

It looked like a flower, and it was pink like a flower, but then it started moving and then jumped, the 11-year-old said, adding, “I was really excited to hear that no one else had found a pink grasshopper at that place before.”

His eyes weren’t deceiving him. What Daniel had found was an adult female common green grasshopper that was born pink. Occasionally females are found in a variety of colors, such as different shades of green and brown, sometimes even purple.

Pink grasshoppers are very rare, especially one with this intensity of color, according to nature reservists. This one was released back into the wild.

Just think. It’s female, it’s adult, and has pink genes … maybe we’ll be seeing a whole new species emerge someday. Unless they’re tasty, then they’re doomed ‘cause they’ll be easy to spot (unless they start hiding around pink flowers).

That’s okay by me. I wouldn’t mind seeing a pink grasshopper, or even one of them pink dolphins you hear talk about. As long as I don’t start seeing pink elephants.