Grasshoppers (Orthoptera: Acrididae) consumed horse (Equus caballus) and cattle (Bos taurus) dung even while lush vegetation was abundant. The cavities in the dung, created by feeding grasshoppers, were used to maintain optimum body temperatures during the hottest part of the day, allowing them to continue feeding. Grasshoppers tend to perch on vegetation to cool themselves through convective heat loss, therefore in areas where livestock grazing has removed such vegetation, dung can be used as an alternate source for thermoregulation.
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