Have you ever thought about where the ears of a grasshopper are located? If you think that everything is so simple, and these insects, like most, have ears on their heads, then the correct answer to this question will surprise you very much. Because the ears of the grasshopper are located under the knees! Why this is exactly so and how it affects the life of an insect, read further in the article.
How sound enters the brain
This is a very complex process in which the hearing organs are involved. Sound waves affect the membrane, which begins to oscillate. The bones located in the middle ear redirect sound vibrations to the inner ear, in which there are nerve endings that transmit impulses to the brain. This is how we hear the sound, otherwise it happens in insects. Since they make sounds at different frequencies, their auditory system must be different.
Mosquitoes and Grasshoppers
Hiram Stevens Maxim, who concurrently created an easel machine gun, was the first to think about the location of the mosquito hearing organ. He thought about this when he saw mosquitoes gather at the lamppost in the evening. He wondered why this was happening. He began to study these insects and came to the conclusion that their hearing organs are located on “antennas”.
Grasshoppers, who have two pairs of ears, are more fortunate. The first of them respond to vibrations that are transmitted along the ground, and they are located under the knees of the insect. The second are located in the shins of the forelegs. That's where the grasshopper’s ear is. The first of them is located so that it forms a fan in shape. In some grasshoppers, these hearing organs open outward, forming two oval membranes, in others the membranes are hidden behind folds, and you can see only two narrow slits. This pair of grasshopper ears is tuned to sound waves that travel through the air.
Other insects
Now you know where the grasshopper’s ear is, but the hearing organs of other insects hide no less mysteries. So, for example, in cicadas, the perception of sound occurs approximately the same, but their membranes are located in the abdomen.
And in butterflies, the scoop has ears that are located at the place where the abdomen and chest are combined. The hearing organs of the marigold, another species of butterfly, are located on the wings, and termites generally throughout the body. Now the answer to the question "where is the grasshopper's ear" does not seem so unusual to you?
What are more interesting grasshoppers
These are widespread insects that can travel a very long distance in just one jump. Locusts can be considered a little more developed from an evolutionary point of view, since representatives of this species also have wings. Thinking about where the grasshopper’s ear is, everyone, of course, decides what is on the head, but this part of the body of the insect is absolutely round, and there are no hearing organs on it.
The peculiarity of the sound perception of grasshoppers is not only that their ears are on jumping legs, but also that in a sitting position they are above the body, and the insect can hear everything that happens above it. The acoustic "equipment" of grasshoppers works great, which allows them to hear even the most insignificant sounds. The same goes for locusts.
Output
Now you know the answer to the provocative question about where the ear of a grasshopper and other insects is. This position of the organs not only helps the insect to catch the smallest sound vibrations, but also serves as a sure guarantee of its safety, because they are able to sense the approach of a dangerous enemy when it is still very far away. Nature worried about grasshoppers, giving them incredible speed, which also often becomes the key to the survival of these small insects.