Mouthparts of Grasshopper

To understand the position of the mouth parts, observe the external features of a grasshopper in this diagram.

The body of the grasshopper is segmented into three portions head, thorax and the abdomen. The mouth parts are attached to the ventral side (underside) of the head portion and surrounds the mouth or the oral cavity which faces down.

Grasshopper - Mouthparts

The different mouthparts are:

Labrum or the upper lip

It is a broad, roughly rectangular shaped structure.

Lingua or the hypopharynx

A membranous tongue-like structure found attached beneath the labrum.

Mandibles

A pair of hard, horny, heavy, large, with jagged inner edges and dark coloured triangular structures found one on either side. The two mandibles move in horizontal motion and crush food between them.

Maxillae

A pair of structures lying outside and behind the mandibles. Each of them consist of 5-segmented sensory maxillary palp in addition to other parts. The maxillae are used to manipulate the food before it enters the mouth.

Labium

Forms the broad median lower lip consisting of several parts in addition to a pair of 3-segmented labial palps on either side.

The maxillary and labial palps have sense organs which help them to chose a suitable vegetation.

The mandibles and the maxillae grind the food by moving it laterally.

The labrum and labium help to hold the food between the mandibles and the maxillae.