This insect has a black and green herring-bone pattern on the femur and a bright red tibia with black spines. The wings of the male extend beyond the abdomen when it is resting. This locust feeds on native grasses as well as grain and crops. The females lay eggs in soft soil where they winter over, hatching as nymphs in spring. They will become adults, feeding from June until December.

The red-legged locust is a short-horned grasshopper (family Acrididae). These have antennae which are not more than half the length of the body, and a tympanum (hearing organ) on each side of the first abdominal segment.