Field Guide

Land Invertebrates

Showing 41 - 45 of 45 results
American bird grasshopper on round-headed bush clover and big bluestem
American Bird Grasshopper
Schistocerca americana
The American bird grasshopper is a large grasshopper with ornate markings. It is a good flier that floats upward into trees. Note the pale stripe running down the back.
Pine tree spur-throat grasshopper resting on a leaf
Pine Tree Spur-Throat Grasshopper
Melanoplus punctulatus
The pine tree spur-throat grasshopper usually lives in wooded areas, where its mottled, brownish-gray camouflage protects it when it rests on tree trunks.
Earthworm on the surface of granular soil
Earthworms
About 175 species in North America
Earthworms are familiar to just about everyone who digs in the soil. They play a major role in the nutrient cycling and structure of soils. There are many species. The most familiar ones in Missouri are nonnative.
Grapevine beetle walking on a person's hand
Scarab Beetles (Scarabaeids)
About 1,700 species in North America north of Mexico
The scarab beetle family is very large, with breathtaking variety — and often great beauty. Many scarabs are large and colorful.
Common true katydid female on a leaf
Katydids
About 250 species in North America north of Mexico
Katydids are a family of insects that may also be called longhorned grasshoppers, because of their super-long antennae. Many resemble green leaves. Others are brown. Members of some species may be bright pink or yellow.
See Also
Photo of a Yellow-Collared Scape Moth
Yellow-Collared Scape Moth
Cisseps fulvicollis
The yellow-collared scape moth is more often “orange-collared.” And whether you think it looks more like a firefly or a wasp, it’s still a moth!
image of Plume Moth on blade of grass
Plume Moths
Nearly 150 species in North America north of Mexico
Slim, delicate plume moths are instantly recognizable by their T-shaped silhouette, long legs, and muted shades of tan and brown. It can be hard to separate the various species.
Photo of an Isabella Tiger Moth
Isabella Tiger Moth (Woolly Bear; Woolly Worm)
Pyrrharctia isabella
Not many people know the adult Isabella tiger moth when they see one, but we’re all acquainted with its caterpillar, the woolly worm, or woolly bear.

About Land Invertebrates in Missouri

Invertebrates are animals without backbones, including earthworms, slugs, snails, and arthropods. Arthropods—invertebrates with “jointed legs” — are a group of invertebrates that includes crayfish, shrimp, millipedes, centipedes, mites, spiders, and insects. There may be as many as 10 million species of insects alive on earth today, and they probably constitute more than 90 percent all animal species.