Care guide
Eastern Lubber Grasshopper
Romalea microptera
A big, slow, flightless grasshopper from the Southeast that eats a wide salad of greens, so the day to day is genuinely easy. Two things to know before you buy: it sprays a foul, irritant defensive secretion when startled, and it is a seasonal animal, with adults living only a few months. Display animal, not for handling.
Romalea microptera
Eastern Lubber Grasshopper: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A big, slow, flightless grasshopper from the Southeast that eats a wide salad of greens, so the day to day is genuinely easy. Two things to know before you buy: it sprays a foul, irritant defensive secretion when startled, and it is a seasonal animal, with adults living only a few months. Display animal, not for handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore)Handling: Not recommended (irritant defensive spray)
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | Warm basking side about 90-95°F, cooler side about 75-80°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low to moderate with strong airflow; dry substrate, hydration from fresh greens (40-70%) |
| Setup Type | Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore) |
| Substrate | Simple: absorbent liner or about 1 in of coco; a few inches of lightly moist sand only if you want eggs |
| Feeding | Herbivore. Fresh leafy greens daily (romaine, dandelion, collard, kale) plus a little carrot or squash; dry rolled oats and bran offered alongside |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 2: Beginner |
| Handling | Not recommended (irritant defensive spray) |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- Baby Buddy, secure screen-top starter for early nymphs
- Taller ventilated screen-top enclosure with an angled climbing branch for juveniles and adults
Warnings First
- Fires a foul-smelling, irritant defensive spray from its sides and can hiss and foam when threatened. Keep it away from your face and eyes and wash your hands after any contact.
- Toxic if eaten. A serious risk for dogs, cats, and other pets that might grab one, and a reason to keep it away from small children.
- Seasonal animal. One generation a year, and adults live only up to about five months, so this is a short-term display animal, not a multi-year pet.
- Flightless but a capable climber. A secure, well-ventilated screen top is required.
- Native US plant pest. Local legality and any movement or permit rules are your responsibility. Needs verification for your state.
- Do not use an open water dish. Lubbers hydrate from fresh greens, and nymphs drown in standing water.
Simple Care
- Feed a variety of fresh greens daily and pull moist leftovers before they mold.
- Give it a warm basking side and let the rest of the enclosure stay cooler.
- Airflow matters. A screen top plus low side vents beat a sealed, damp box.
- Hydration comes from the greens and a light mist, not a dish: nymphs drown in standing water. If you want a visible water source, use a cap packed with grit.
- Add a rough branch or stick at an angle so it has room to climb and molt.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Ventilation is the priority. A screen top or well-vented enclosure keeps humidity from stalling and cuts the mold and disease risk that comes with uneaten greens.
- Add low side vents to that screen top rather than relying on the top alone. A screen lid vents the air above the animal, but the moisture problem here sits at the bottom: wilting greens and frass on the substrate. Vents low on two opposite walls pull air across that layer, which is what actually cuts the mold and disease risk rather than just improving the air the grasshopper breathes.
- This is a warmth-driven insect that basks to a high working body temperature, near 97°F in studies. Offer a warm side with a basking lamp mounted safely outside the enclosure, keep combustibles clear, and let it move to a cooler side to self-regulate.
- The warm basking side is also a ventilation consideration: warm air rises and carries moisture with it, so a warm side plus low cross vents plus a screen top gives you a natural convection loop that keeps the enclosure dry. That is the whole humidity strategy here, since a lubber gets its water from food rather than from the air.
- Height and a rough, angled climbing branch matter more than floor decor. The insect climbs to molt and hangs to shed cleanly, so those surfaces need to stay dry and grippy: another reason not to mist heavily.
- Substrate can be an absorbent liner changed often, or about an inch of coco. For eggs, give a few inches of lightly moist sand for the female to lay in.
- Skip the water dish. Lubbers take their water from fresh greens, and nymphs drown in even shallow standing water. A light mist on the greens or one wall covers any shortfall, and if you want a visible water source use a bottle cap packed with grit so there is no open surface.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Diet: in the wild the eastern lubber uses a very broad host range, over 100 plant species across dozens of families. In captivity a rotating salad of romaine, dandelion, collard, and kale, plus small amounts of carrot or squash and dry rolled oats and bran, covers it. They are heavy eaters.
- Water and moisture: much of their water comes from fresh greens, and they balance themselves by switching between moist and dry foods. A light mist or a shallow, easily exited water source is enough. Replace moist, uneaten food daily.
- Growth and molting: normally five nymphal instars, occasionally six, before adulthood. Give a rough branch at about a 45-degree angle and roughly the body's diameter so the insect can anchor and shed without deforming. Do not disturb a molting animal.
- Life span: adults live up to about five months. Nymphs start out mostly black with a bright dorsal stripe and mature into the yellow-and-black adult form.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: Southeastern United States, from North Carolina south through Florida and west across Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana to central Texas. A warm-season species of fields, weedy edges, and open ground.
- Habitat translation: Give it warmth, airflow, and height. A screen-topped enclosure with a basking-warm side, a simple substrate, and a rough angled branch to climb covers most of its needs. Fresh greens are the entire diet.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Adult size: males about 1.7-2.2 in, females about 2-2.8 in and sometimes up to 3.5 in, so females are noticeably larger. Big Z's ships this one at 2.5-3.5 in.
- Defense: when threatened it spreads its short wings, hisses, secretes a foul foam from its spiracles, and can spray an irritant chemical a short distance, at least about 0.6 in. The bright coloring is a warning, and the animal is toxic to many that try to eat it.
- Seasonality: one generation per year, overwintering as eggs. Treat mature adults as a season-long display animal.
- Escape and safety: flightless but a steady climber that will test a loose lid. Work with a secure screen top, and keep the spray and toxicity in mind when siting the enclosure around pets and children.
- Legality: a native agricultural pest that feeds on citrus, vegetables, and ornamental plants. Some states regulate movement or possession of pest grasshoppers. Confirm your local rules. Needs verification.
Romalea microptera
Eastern Lubber Grasshopper
Big Z's Quick Verdict: A big, slow, flightless grasshopper from the Southeast that eats a wide salad of greens, so the day to day is genuinely easy. Two things to know before you buy: it sprays a foul, irritant defensive secretion when startled, and it is a seasonal animal, with adults living only a few months. Display animal, not for handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore)Handling: Not recommended (irritant defensive spray)
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Care Snapshot
| Temp | Warm basking side about 90-95°F, cooler side about 75-80°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low to moderate with strong airflow; dry substrate, hydration from fresh greens (40-70%) |
| Setup | Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore) |
| Substrate | Simple: absorbent liner or about 1 in of coco; a few inches of lightly moist sand only if you want eggs |
| Feeding | Herbivore. Fresh leafy greens daily (romaine, dandelion, collard, kale) plus a little carrot or squash; dry rolled oats and bran offered alongside |
| Handling | Not recommended (irritant defensive spray) |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Recommended Big Z's Setup
- Baby Buddy for young nymphs, with escape-proof screen ventilation
- A taller, screen-topped ventilated enclosure with vertical climb space for juveniles and adults (confirm which Build a Habitat Zone or enclosure maps here)
Critical Notes
- Fires a foul-smelling, irritant defensive spray from its sides and can hiss and foam when threatened. Keep it away from your face and eyes and wash your hands after any contact.
- Toxic if eaten. A serious risk for dogs, cats, and other pets that might grab one, and a reason to keep it away from small children.
- Seasonal animal. One generation a year, and adults live only up to about five months, so this is a short-term display animal, not a multi-year pet.
- Flightless but a capable climber. A secure, well-ventilated screen top is required.
- Native US plant pest. Local legality and any movement or permit rules are your responsibility. Needs verification for your state.
- Do not use an open water dish. Lubbers hydrate from fresh greens, and nymphs drown in standing water.
Care Basics
- Feed a variety of fresh greens daily and pull moist leftovers before they mold.
- Give it a warm basking side and let the rest of the enclosure stay cooler.
- Airflow matters. A screen top plus low side vents beat a sealed, damp box.
- Hydration comes from the greens and a light mist, not a dish: nymphs drown in standing water. If you want a visible water source, use a cap packed with grit.
- Add a rough branch or stick at an angle so it has room to climb and molt.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Diet: in the wild the eastern lubber uses a very broad host range, over 100 plant species across dozens of families. In captivity a rotating salad of romaine, dandelion, collard, and kale, plus small amounts of carrot or squash and dry rolled oats and bran, covers it. They are heavy eaters.
- Water and moisture: much of their water comes from fresh greens, and they balance themselves by switching between moist and dry foods. A light mist or a shallow, easily exited water source is enough. Replace moist, uneaten food daily.
- Growth and molting: normally five nymphal instars, occasionally six, before adulthood. Give a rough branch at about a 45-degree angle and roughly the body's diameter so the insect can anchor and shed without deforming. Do not disturb a molting animal.
- Life span: adults live up to about five months. Nymphs start out mostly black with a bright dorsal stripe and mature into the yellow-and-black adult form.
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Romalea microptera
Eastern Lubber Grasshopper: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A big, slow, flightless grasshopper from the Southeast that eats a wide salad of greens, so the day to day is genuinely easy. Two things to know before you buy: it sprays a foul, irritant defensive secretion when startled, and it is a seasonal animal, with adults living only a few months. Display animal, not for handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore)Handling: Not recommended (irritant defensive spray)
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | Warm basking side about 90-95°F, cooler side about 75-80°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low to moderate with strong airflow; dry substrate, hydration from fresh greens (40-70%) |
| Setup Type | Ventilated terrestrial climber (herbivore) |
| Substrate | Simple: absorbent liner or about 1 in of coco; a few inches of lightly moist sand only if you want eggs |
| Feeding | Herbivore. Fresh leafy greens daily (romaine, dandelion, collard, kale) plus a little carrot or squash; dry rolled oats and bran offered alongside |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 2: Beginner |
| Handling | Not recommended (irritant defensive spray) |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- Baby Buddy, secure screen-top starter for early nymphs
- Taller ventilated screen-top enclosure with an angled climbing branch for juveniles and adults
Warnings First
- Fires a foul-smelling, irritant defensive spray from its sides and can hiss and foam when threatened. Keep it away from your face and eyes and wash your hands after any contact.
- Toxic if eaten. A serious risk for dogs, cats, and other pets that might grab one, and a reason to keep it away from small children.
- Seasonal animal. One generation a year, and adults live only up to about five months, so this is a short-term display animal, not a multi-year pet.
- Flightless but a capable climber. A secure, well-ventilated screen top is required.
- Native US plant pest. Local legality and any movement or permit rules are your responsibility. Needs verification for your state.
- Do not use an open water dish. Lubbers hydrate from fresh greens, and nymphs drown in standing water.
Simple Care
- Feed a variety of fresh greens daily and pull moist leftovers before they mold.
- Give it a warm basking side and let the rest of the enclosure stay cooler.
- Airflow matters. A screen top plus low side vents beat a sealed, damp box.
- Hydration comes from the greens and a light mist, not a dish: nymphs drown in standing water. If you want a visible water source, use a cap packed with grit.
- Add a rough branch or stick at an angle so it has room to climb and molt.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Ventilation is the priority. A screen top or well-vented enclosure keeps humidity from stalling and cuts the mold and disease risk that comes with uneaten greens.
- Add low side vents to that screen top rather than relying on the top alone. A screen lid vents the air above the animal, but the moisture problem here sits at the bottom: wilting greens and frass on the substrate. Vents low on two opposite walls pull air across that layer, which is what actually cuts the mold and disease risk rather than just improving the air the grasshopper breathes.
- This is a warmth-driven insect that basks to a high working body temperature, near 97°F in studies. Offer a warm side with a basking lamp mounted safely outside the enclosure, keep combustibles clear, and let it move to a cooler side to self-regulate.
- The warm basking side is also a ventilation consideration: warm air rises and carries moisture with it, so a warm side plus low cross vents plus a screen top gives you a natural convection loop that keeps the enclosure dry. That is the whole humidity strategy here, since a lubber gets its water from food rather than from the air.
- Height and a rough, angled climbing branch matter more than floor decor. The insect climbs to molt and hangs to shed cleanly, so those surfaces need to stay dry and grippy: another reason not to mist heavily.
- Substrate can be an absorbent liner changed often, or about an inch of coco. For eggs, give a few inches of lightly moist sand for the female to lay in.
- Skip the water dish. Lubbers take their water from fresh greens, and nymphs drown in even shallow standing water. A light mist on the greens or one wall covers any shortfall, and if you want a visible water source use a bottle cap packed with grit so there is no open surface.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Diet: in the wild the eastern lubber uses a very broad host range, over 100 plant species across dozens of families. In captivity a rotating salad of romaine, dandelion, collard, and kale, plus small amounts of carrot or squash and dry rolled oats and bran, covers it. They are heavy eaters.
- Water and moisture: much of their water comes from fresh greens, and they balance themselves by switching between moist and dry foods. A light mist or a shallow, easily exited water source is enough. Replace moist, uneaten food daily.
- Growth and molting: normally five nymphal instars, occasionally six, before adulthood. Give a rough branch at about a 45-degree angle and roughly the body's diameter so the insect can anchor and shed without deforming. Do not disturb a molting animal.
- Life span: adults live up to about five months. Nymphs start out mostly black with a bright dorsal stripe and mature into the yellow-and-black adult form.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: Southeastern United States, from North Carolina south through Florida and west across Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana to central Texas. A warm-season species of fields, weedy edges, and open ground.
- Habitat translation: Give it warmth, airflow, and height. A screen-topped enclosure with a basking-warm side, a simple substrate, and a rough angled branch to climb covers most of its needs. Fresh greens are the entire diet.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Adult size: males about 1.7-2.2 in, females about 2-2.8 in and sometimes up to 3.5 in, so females are noticeably larger. Big Z's ships this one at 2.5-3.5 in.
- Defense: when threatened it spreads its short wings, hisses, secretes a foul foam from its spiracles, and can spray an irritant chemical a short distance, at least about 0.6 in. The bright coloring is a warning, and the animal is toxic to many that try to eat it.
- Seasonality: one generation per year, overwintering as eggs. Treat mature adults as a season-long display animal.
- Escape and safety: flightless but a steady climber that will test a loose lid. Work with a secure screen top, and keep the spray and toxicity in mind when siting the enclosure around pets and children.
- Legality: a native agricultural pest that feeds on citrus, vegetables, and ornamental plants. Some states regulate movement or possession of pest grasshoppers. Confirm your local rules. Needs verification.