About the Orthopterists’ Society
The Orthopterists’ Society is an international organization dedicated to connecting people interested in Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets, katydids, and more!) and the other 9 insect orders that comprise Polyneoptera (“orthopteroids”): Blattodea (+Isoptera), Dermaptera, Embioptera, Grylloblattodea, Mantodea, Mantophasmatodea, Phasmida, Plecoptera, and Zoraptera. We encourage collaborative research, control programs, and investigations into all aspects of orthopterology among people, countries, and organizations of the world.
We currently have over 300 members from 60 countries across 6 continents. The Society publishes Metaleptea, a tri-annual Newsletter and the Journal of Orthoptera Research, a bi-annual, open access, peer-reviewed scientific journal (members publish for free!). Members can also apply for grants for research and travel, and occasional awards. We also cooperate with the taxonomic database of the world’s Orthoptera, Orthoptera Species File Online, and are always interested in promoting the work of members and others working on Polyneoptera.
The Orthopterists’ Society was founded in 1976 as the Pan American Acridological Society (PAAS) by 35 orthopterists who met at San Martín de los Andes, Argentina. Its Constitution and Bylaws were adopted in 1977 and it was accorded tax-exempt status by the United States government in 1978. The meetings held since San Martin de los Andes are referred to as International Congresses of Orthopterology (ICOs) and occur every three/four years. Previous congresses were held in 2) Bozeman, Montana, U.S.A. (1979), 3) Maracay, Venezuela (1981), 4) Saskatoon, Canada (1985), 5) Valsaín, Spain (1989), 6) Hilo, Hawaii, U.S.A. (1993), 7) Cairns, Australia (1997), 8) Montpellier, France (2001), 9) Canmore, Canada (2005), 10) Antalya, Turkey (2009), 11) Kunming, China (2013), 12) Ilheus, Brazil (2016), 13) Agadir, Morocco (2019), and 14) Mérida, Mexico (2023). Please check the News section for updates on upcoming meetings. More information about each ICO and a list of past Executive Officers.
In addition to ICOs, the Society has often hosted an annual symposium at the annual Entomological Society of America conferences since 1987 (e.g., a recurring one on orthopteroids), and has also sponsored or supported several meetings on orthopterology, both internationally (e.g., FAO workshop on “The future of biopesticides in Desert Locust management” in Senegal, 2007) and nationally (e.g., Brazilian Symposia on Orthoptera, Brazil, 2006 & 2008)
The complete Constitution and By-Laws of the Orthopterists’ Society (as revised November 20, 2005) can be downloaded in PDF format.
Society Officers
(updated October, 2023)
President: Axel Hochkirch, Musée national d’histoire naturelle Luxembourg, 25 Rue Münster, 2100 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
President-Elect: Fernando Montealegre-Z, University of Lincoln, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Joseph Banks Laboratories, Lincoln, United Kingdom
Executive Director: Mohamed Abdellahi Ould Babah EBBE, DG Institut du Sahel (INSAH/CILSS), BP 1530 ACI 2000, Bamako, Mali
Executive Director Designate: (none currently)
Treasurer: Pamm Mihm, 2417 Fields South Drive, Champaign, Illinois 61822, U.S.A.
Managing Editor, Journal of Orthoptera Research: Tony Robillard, Institut Systématique Evolution Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Paris, France
Editorial Assistant, Journal of Orthoptera Research: Nancy Morris, North Buxton, Ontario, Canada (*not currently an Officer per the Constitution)
Editor, Metaleptea: Hojun Song, Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, U.S.A.
Associate Editor, Metaleptea: Derek A. Woller, USDA-APHIS-PPQ-Pest Exclusion and Import Programs, Kentucky, U.S.A.
Officer, Species File Online: María Marta Cigliano, División Entomología, Museo de La Plata, Universidad Nacional de la Plata, Paseo del Bosque S/N, 1900 La Plata, Argentina
Manager, The Theodore J. Cohn Research Fund: Michel Lecoq, Montpellier, France
Webmaster, Orthopterists’ Society: Derek A. Woller (inspired by the previous site by Piotr Naskrecki and almost all polyneopteran images are his ©), USDA-APHIS-PPQ-Pest Exclusion and Import Programs, Kentucky, U.S.A.
Have news that needs to be posted on the homepage? Got an idea for the site? Found a broken link or an error? Please contact Derek!
Regional Representatives
(updated December, 2020)
Japan: Haruki Tatsuta
East Asia: Long Zhang
South Asia: Rohini Balakrishnan
North & Central Asia, & East Europe: Michael Sergeev
West Europe: Gerlind Lehmann
Australia, New Zealand, & Pacific Islands: Michael Kearney
North America: Kathleen King
Central & South America: Martina E. Pocco
North, Sahelian, & West Africa: Amina Idrissi
East Africa: Claudia Hemp
Central & Southern Africa: Vanessa Couldridge
Middle East – Caucasus: Battal Çiplak