Orthoptera is an order of insects, many of which are at times serious pests of crops and nuisance household pests.
Orthoptera are found in various habitats throughout the world. Blattidae, or cockroaches, are serious cosmopolitan pests of buildings. Phasmidae, or stick insects live in trees and certain species, (e.g. Diapheromera femorata) may be so abundant as to completely defoliate trees. The Gryllidae, or crickets, are mainly agricultural pests. To the family Acrididae belong the majority of crop destroying Orthoptera; they are the grasshoppers and locusts, and are the most universally distributed and most abundant members of this order.