''Grylloblatta campodeiformis'', also known as the northern rock crawler, is an

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nut ...

species of

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

in family

Grylloblattidae Grylloblattidae, commonly known as the icebugs, or ice crawlers, is a family of extremophile ( psychrophile) and wingless insects that live in the cold on top of mountains and the edges of glaciers. They belong, along with Mantophasmatidae (r ...

. Like other species in the genus '' Grylloblatta'', it is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

to North America.

Taxonomy

This species was the first grylloblatid discovered and formally described in the scientific literature by

Edmund Walker Sir Byron Edmund Walker, CVO (14 October 1848 – 27 March 1924) was a Canadian banker. He was the president of the Canadian Bank of Commerce from 1907 to 1924, and a generous patron of the arts, helping to found and nurture many of Canada's ...

in 1914. It was originally placed in the order

Orthoptera Orthoptera () is an order of insects that comprises the grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, including closely related insects, such as the bush crickets or katydids and wētā. The order is subdivided into two suborders: Caelifera – grass ...

but has since been placed in the order Notoptera. There are currently four subspecies: * ''Grylloblatta campodeiformis athapaska'' Kamp, 1979, recorded in British Columbia, Alberta, and Montana * ''Grylloblatta campodeiformis campodeiformis'' Walker, 1914, recorded in British Columbia * ''Grylloblatta campodeiformis nahanni'' Kamp, 1979, recorded in British Columbia * ''Grylloblatta campodeiformis occidentalis'' Silvestri, 1931, recorded in Washington state, US

Description

Adults are typically long, excluding

ovipositor The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typica ...

s and cerci, and are fairly elongate, wingless insects. They are a uniform honey-yellow in colour and covered with very short hair. Unlike some other species of grylloblatid, ''G. campodeiformis'' has eyes which have roughly 70 facets. The head is fairly flat and rounded. The

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the ...

is elongate and over a third of the body length. The abdomen is composed of 10 segments and over half the body length. The legs are long and narrow (cursorial) with stout coxae and long femora. Their antennae are long ~ and thread-like. In adults the number of antennal subsegments is variable ranging from 24 to 27.

Biology

Diet Rock crawlers are nocturnal predators and scavengers that actively search for small, invertebrate prey. They also venture onto snowfields, foraging for “insect-fallout” carried and deposited there by wind.

Distribution and habitat

This species was originally discovered on Sulphur Mountain,

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

in the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost par ...

at an altitude of . Subsequently it has been recorded from

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

(Canada),

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

(USA). They are ground dwelling animals, living between small stones and debris during the day. While they can survive warmer temperatures of up to they are typically

nocturnal Nocturnality is an ethology, animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have ...

, becoming active on snow fields at cooler temperatures of around making them

psychrophilic Psychrophiles or cryophiles (adj. ''psychrophilic'' or ''cryophilic'') are extremophilic organisms that are capable of growth and reproduction in low temperatures, ranging from to . They have an optimal growth temperature at . They are found in ...

. Like other North American grylloblattids, ''G. campodeiformis'' is at some risk of extinction due to its habitat requirements and reduced mobility.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q13582698 Grylloblattidae Insects of Canada Insects of the United States Psychrophiles Taxa named by Edmund Murton Walker