Saussure’s Blue-winged Grasshopper (Leprus intermedius) is one of several species of grasshopper exhibiting blue wings, but this species can be further distinguished from those similar by its strong blue pigmentation on the underside of the thorax and abdomen. Named after the accomplished Swiss entomologist and taxonomist Henri de Saussure, these grasshoppers can be found throughout the Southwestern United States and into Mexico occupying steep, rocky terrain. This species rarely flies long distances, with adult females typically just hopping about despite having fully developed wings. 
This particular specimen was databased and imaged by the CU Museum of Natural History’s Entomology Collections as a part of a grant provided by a larger collections network called SCAN (Symbiota Collections of Arthropods Network). SCAN is made up of a centralized database of arthropod collections from over 100 North American collections, including high resolution images like this one. This specimen was collected on a primarily herpetology-focused trip by Paul Maslin, then CU Museum Curator of Zoology, and Herman Fehlmann, a Colorado native herpetologist who went on to work with the Smithsonian and George Vanderbilt Foundation. Although neither Maslin nor Fehlmann were entomologists, the collection of this specimen during an otherwise herpetological endeavor sheds light on the striking beauty of the Saussure’s Blue-winged Grasshopper, not even passed up by two vertebrate-loving scientists!