A Flightless Grasshopper Thought to Be Extinct Was Spotted in Virginia for the First Time Since 1946

An Appalachian grasshopper (Appalachia hebardi) was spotted in Virginia for the first time in almost 80 years after it was thought to be extinct. The last official documented sighting of the flightless grasshopper in the state was in 1946, according to a statement from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).

Andrew Rapp, a field zoologist with the DCR's Natural Heritage Program, captured an adult female when he was in the northwest part of Virginia. This provided proof that the species is still in existence. While there have been no official sightings of the grasshopper in Virginia for nearly eight decades, there have been reports of people spotting the insect periodically.

Last week, the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation shared the rediscovery on Instagram. "This flightless species with impressive camouflage had only been known from historical records in five Virginia counties and was once believed to have gone extinct," the caption read.

Rapp was determined to find an Appalachian grasshopper and explored several locations throughout Virginia to locate one. On September 3, towards the end of his search, he was walking along the side of a road in Augusta County when he finally spotted the insect in a pile of gravel.

"I was looking for it,” Rapp told Radio IQ's Roxy Todd. "I locked eyes with it. And I was like, ‘Oh! I think that’s probably it!’” He slowly approached the grasshopper and used his net to capture it before going through the process of identifying it.

Rapp hopes his discovery will inspire other zoologists to continue looking for this grasshopper. "It opens up a totally new world when you start looking closer on your typical walks, looking at the bugs that are running across a trail," he said.