Crickets, Katydids, and Habitat Restoration

Crickets, Katydids, and Habitat Restoration:
Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills from 2008 to 2012
Lisa Rainsong
Funded by the Research Grant Program of the Geauga Park District
Crickets, Katydids, and Habitat Restoration:
Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills from 2008 to 2012
Lisa Rainsong
Funded by the Research Grant Program of the Geauga Park District
Introduction
Purpose of the survey
Why survey crickets and katydids?
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2
Methods, materials and project description
Habitat identification and survey routes
Duration of the survey
Frequency
Hours
Use of recording equipment and photography
Materials
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5
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Weather: heat, drought, and parched wetlands
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Frohring Meadows in 2012
Habitats and changes since 2008
Survey sections and description
Map of the survey area
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Orchard Hills in 2012
Habitats and changes since 2008
Survey sections and description
Map of the survey area
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Species accounts for both parks: katydids
Tettigoniiadae: the katydids
Meadow katydids
Conocephalus
Orchelimum
The mystery meadow katydid in the Frohring woods
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19
22
Conehead katydids: Neoconocephalus
False katydids
Amblychorypha
Microcentrum
Scudderia: the bush katydids
Common True Katydid: Pterophylla
Shieldback katydids
Atlanticus
Metrioptera
Drumming Katydid: Meconema
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27
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29
31
36
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37
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Species accounts for both parks: crickets
Grillidae: the crickets
Field crickets: Gryllus
Bush crickets: Orocharis
Ground crickets
Eunemobius
Allonemobius
Neonemobius
Tree crickets
Oecanthus
Neoxabea
Trigs (sword-tailed crickets): Trigonidiinae
Anaxypha
Phyllopalpus
“Mystery crickets” at Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills
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40
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46
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55
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Grasshoppers
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Insect song and the issue of noise
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Frohring Meadows katydid and cricket species present in 2012
(with new species added since 2008 noted)
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Orchard Hills katydid and cricket species present in 2012
(with new species added since 2008 noted)
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Summary: Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills documentation from 2008 to 2012
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Weather: what actually was observed in the wetlands?
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Moving north: habitat restoration, or climate change and human transportation?
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Frohring Meadows: crickets, katydids, wetlands, and meadow management
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Frohring Meadows: conclusions
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Orchard Hills: crickets, katydids, wetlands, and stream restoration
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Orchard Hills: conclusions
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Resources
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Additional photos from the field season
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Audio CD contents
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Survey spreadsheets for the Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills survey season
(These spreadsheets can be found as separate files if being read online or on CD.)
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Short-winged Meadow Katydid female, Frohring Meadows, 9-11-12
Crickets, Katydids, and Habitat Restoration:
Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills from 2008 to 2012
INTRODUCTION
Purpose of the survey
The purpose of this study is to determine how cricket and katydid populations have changed
with the habitat creation and restoration at Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills since 2008.
Additionally, this report provides a new and detailed baseline for these insects at both parks.
The initial goals of this survey were as follows:
This survey will compare the effects on crickets and katydids of two meadow management
practices - burning and disc/herbicide/replanting – against each other and against a control
area that was replanted in the past but never burned. Additionally, a damp natural wetland
area will be compared with two adjacent wetlands areas - one created in 2007 and the other in
2009. Finally, cricket and katydid survey results from 2008 will be updated with current 2012
species accounts.
The three-way comparison had to be modified because burning was not possible within the
time frame of the survey. However, other comparisons were possible. In 2008 I conducted a
shorter-term volunteer survey of crickets and katydids at Frohring, and the upper meadows
were not surveyed at that time. With the 2012 survey I now had the opportunity to study and
compare all meadow areas throughout the entire season of late May through the beginning of
October. I also recorded changes after disc/herbicide treatments and again after the planting
of buckwheat and rye grass.
Several new species for the park were found, and increased numbers in other species were
noted. I was also able to study all three wetland areas: the original wet meadow area, the first
new wetland created in 2007, and the more recent wetland created in 2009. There were
changes in both the species present and the numbers of some of these insects since 2008. This
survey reports those changes.
Orchard Hills Park was the other Geauga Park District park I surveyed in 2008, and major
habitat restoration projects have been undertaken since that time. Because both parks have
undergone significant habitat creation and restoration within the past five years, surveying
both was once again a logical pairing.
1
My survey at Orchard Hills focused on the stream restoration areas and the recently-created
wetlands. These areas are still very new and baseline data will provide useful information for
future comparisons. Positive changes are already beginning to appear in the cricket and
katydid populations, and these insects are certain to flourish here in the future.
Why survey crickets and katydids?
The crickets and katydid species found at Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills are an important
food source for many birds, mammals, insects, and spiders. Tree crickets and katydids are prey
for birds and bats, and small mammals eat nymphs and ground crickets. Larger insects eat both
adults and nymphs, and other insects eat their eggs. Because of their diversity, katydids and
crickets are found in almost any habitat I survey. Therefore, a study of the crickets and
katydids in a park or preserve can provide information about the diversity and functioning of
different habitats and also the current status of an important food source for birds and other
animals.
Crickets and katydids are generally small, well-camouflaged, or both – and they often sing
primarily or even exclusively at night. Fortunately, their singing allows someone who knows
their songs to document the species present with a great deal of accuracy. Audio recording
equipment enables documentation even when the insects are not visible.
Crickets and katydids - the Ensifera - are a suborder of the order Orthoptera, which also
includes grasshoppers. Although grasshoppers also are an excellent source of food for birds
and mammals, identification to species can be very difficult and many could be missed. Most
do not “sing” to advertise their presence, and those that do only make a rather soft sound by
scraping a leg against a wing. The songs of crickets and katydids are generally louder, more
repetitious, and are species-specific. Therefore, only crickets and katydids were included in this
survey.
The population changes over time can also give us information of species movement within the
context of a warming climate. I have found several cricket and katydid species in Geauga
County that are well north of their documented ranges, though I have never found a northern
species that is south of its recorded range in Geauga County or elsewhere in NE Ohio. With this
year’s survey of Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills, I documented species that simply were
not present at these parks in 2008 or had only one very small population that has since greatly
expanded.
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METHODS, MATERIALS, AND PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Habitat identification and survey routes
Both Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills have new wetlands created in the past five years.
Orchard Hills also has stream restoration areas that are becoming vibrant habitats. Therefore,
these were my primary focus. In addition, the Frohring Meadows survey covered the entire
meadow area and also included the power line corridor and the lower woods. Orchard Hills
included the entire McIntosh Trail, which follows and crosses over the former golf course
fairways. A map and detailed description is presented in the report chapters that address each
of these parks.
Duration of the survey
I began looking and listening for the earliest species – Roesel’s Katydids and Spring Field
Crickets – in May. I also began searching for cricket and katydid nymphs. I was once again able
to record the approximate beginning song dates for many species and watched as the earlier
ones became less common and eventually disappeared from the concert stage in the fall.
Roesel’s Katydid: female nymph at Frohring on 5-31-12.
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By the beginning of October, the temperatures were already becoming too cold to add
additional species with the exception of the Round-tipped Conehead at Orchard Hills on
October 1st. Bush Katydids and Coneheads sang in the late afternoon as it was only warm
enough to sing during the vulnerable daylight hours. Tree crickets were silent soon after dark
because of the rapidly-dropping temperatures, though Black-horned and Four-spotted Tree
Crickets continued to sing in the meadows and Pine Tree Crickets sang in the pines beginning in
mid-afternoon. Ground crickets, sheltered in vegetation, dead leaves, and close to the warm
earth, were still singing. Except for the evening of October 3rd and 4th when temperatures
dropped less quickly, evenings had become far too chilly for insects to move their tiny wings
fast enough to sing. The meadows became silent at sunset with the exception of ground
crickets close to the warm earth. A strong cold front brought the coldest temperatures of the
season on October 5th. Therefore, my last survey date was October 4th.
Only a few very hardy Four-spotted Tree Crickets
were still singing at Orchard Hills on 10-25-12.
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Frequency
I conducted 28 trips to Frohring Meadows and 19 trips to Orchard Hills during the course of the
2012 survey. I did not necessarily cover all of the habitats each time, as I wanted to do a more
detailed study of my subjects in their vast areas. Two survey visits were necessary to cover all
the primary areas of study at Frohring and at least one was required for the Orchard Hills
habitats. A more detailed exploration of the restoration areas took considerably more time.
Additionally, at Frohring Meadows I would periodically explore areas not on my primary list or
targeted habitats.
Hours
A detailed cricket and katydid survey required afternoon and evening monitoring of
representative habitats, as some species sing only after dark. The paved and gravel paths at
both parks made night time access quite possible. The firebreaks at Frohring are not easy
hiking, but they allowed access to habitat edges not accessible from the trails. Even parts of the
wetland areas were possible to maneuver because of the drought. Consequently, I was able to
survey most areas well after dark.
Use of recording equipment and photography
My recording equipment was an essential part of this survey. I used my field sound recording
equipment to assist with locating the singers and also to document their presence. It can be
very challenging to pinpoint the location of an individual singer without the assistance of a
highly-directional microphone, and it can also be difficult to hear the softest singers when
species with louder songs are singing. The data I entered for the sound recordings includes the
temperature, as this factor significantly affects the speed and pitch of cricket and katydid songs.
My recording equipment allowed me to document species that I was not able to locate visually
or photograph clearly. For example, a new species for Frohring – the Nebraska Conehead - was
singing at night in Frohring’s power line corridor on August 2nd. This is not a conehead I have
heard east of Lorain County, but I could not get close enough to the insect to obtain as clear a
photograph as I would have liked. However, my diagnostic recordings conclusively identified
this species by its unique song.
I took many photographs throughout the survey and have photo documentation for as many
species at each location as possible.
Materials
The equipment I used for this survey included a Marantz PMD 620 recorder and a Sennheiser
ME67 shotgun microphone, Adobe Audition software for editing sound files, a Fuji Finepix HS10
camera, plastic containers for catching insects to identify and photograph, a hand lens, and field
guides.
5
I combined visual records with sound recordings for documentation and identification. These
insects often are not easy to locate, but recording their songs was useful both for identifying
them and for confirming their presence. Recording also helped make distinctions between
similar species possible, as visual identification for ground crickets and Conocephalus meadow
katydids is notoriously difficult.
The Allard’s Ground Cricket and the Striped Ground Cricket look quite similar
but have very different rhythmic patterns. The Allard’s song is indicated by the
first half of this sonogram and the Striped Ground Cricket song by the second half.
(Recorded at Frohring Meadows.)
WEATHER: HEAT, DROUGHT, AND PARCHED WETLANDS
Very little snow fell in the extremely mild winter before this survey began, and spring arrived
two to three weeks early. Crickets and katydids responded to the warm temperatures and
matured much earlier than usual. Some of these species also seemed to finish their season
earlier.
Drought was also a significant factor this summer. Wetlands were parched and cracked
throughout the summer. It was possible to walk right up to katydids that should have been
surrounded by water, and I found them on plants that were turning brown or appeared almost
dead. The numbers of katydids would probably have been higher in a wetter year.
Meadow plants were much shorter than usual, and this might have adversely affected the
Scudderia bush katydids that typically reside in meadows and hedge rows. Until the Texas Bush
Katydids flourished in the fall, our most common Scudderia species were in much lower
numbers than I would have expected and were present for a shorter period of time.
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Wetland at Frohring Meadows on 8-8-12. I could walk all the way across.
This was not a situation that was exclusive to Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills. I made two
trips to Burton Wetlands, the location of my 2010 and 2011 surveys, to see if the meadow
vegetation height and bush katydid numbers were similar - and they were. More rain fell in far
eastern Geauga and Ashtabula Counties. When I visited the gas well parcel at Observatory Park
- one of my 2009 survey sites – vegetation was shorter than usual but still closer to normal
height and vibrancy than at the other locations. Katydid numbers also seemed much closer to
what I typically would expect to find there.
Crickets appeared to be less adversely affected by the heat and drought, as I will describe in the
species accounts. Four-spotted and Black-horned Tree Crickets sang from the asters and
goldenrod as they always do, but they were closer to the ground because the drought had
stunted their plants. Ground crickets were unaffected, but Fall Field Crickets began singing two
weeks early and ended earlier than usual as well. Some tree cricket habitat was impacted by
the effect of the drought on the trees. On August 7th at Orchard Hills, I wrote, “Many parking
lot trees have lost their leaves because of drought and heat and this also means a loss of tree
cricket habitat.”
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FROHRING MEADOWS IN 2012
Habitats and changes since 2008
Frohring Meadows is still a “young” park, having only been open to the public since 2007. Its
meadows are former farm fields where prairie plantings and more diverse native meadow
plantings are being established over time. Some areas were disked and herbicided this summer
and will be reseeded this fall. This process also included temporary seeding of buckwheat and
rye grass in areas near the park driveway to prevent establishment of non-native plants until
late-season prairie seeding can be done.
A wet sedge meadow with scattered willows already existed. Two new wetland areas were
created; one in 2007 and an adjacent wetland in 2009. The 2007 was quite new at the time of
my 2008 volunteer survey and the second had not yet been created.
The meadows that border these wet areas are predominantly goldenrod interspersed with
asters and seeded wildflowers. The meadows above the driveway and closer to the
intersection of Savage Road and Chagrin Road are drier and include a greater concentration of
asters.
Beyond the lower meadows is a power line corridor that is quite rich in birds and insects. There
is also a woodland area closer to Savage Road and Washington; the trail leads through the
woods and across the power line corridor. Parts of this woodland are relatively open and damp,
and katydids more typical of meadow areas can be found in these openings.
Survey sections and description (see map below)
The three Frohring Meadow wetland areas are labeled as follows:
Wetland 1 (W1): This is the original wet sedge meadow area (bordered by woodland) on the
north side of the Dragonfly Trail. It has willows of various sizes, and the vegetation is quite
dense. A narrow, roughly-mowed path provided access to parts of this area that normally
would have been much more difficult to walk. It seems likely that this area would be the source
for crickets and katydids that subsequently began to move into the newly-created wetlands.
Wetland 2 (W2) is the northwest wetland and currently has dense stands of cattails. W3 and
W2 are separated by a raised divider that supports dense areas of asters, goldenrod,
smartweeds, and other vegetation.
Wetland 3 (W3) is the more easterly of the two new wetlands and is closer to the driveway. It
is the newer of the two created wetlands and has far fewer cattails.
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The lower meadow areas are labeled Meadow 1 (M1) closer to the Katydid Shelter, Meadow 2
(M2) roughly across from Wetland 2, and Meadow 3 near the power line corridor and across
the trail beyond Wetland 2. A tree line extends into the northeast corner of M3, and therefore
species such as Common True Katydids could be heard calling from trees in that corner.
Meadow 4 (M4) is east of the wetlands and south of the woods. It is bordered by the woods to
the north, Savage Road to the east, and the park driveway to the south.
The upper meadow areas are Meadow 5 (M5), which is on the southwest side of the park and
Meadow 6 (M6) on the southwest side. M5 is closer to Chagrin Road and M6 is bordered by
Savage Road. M6 appears to be the driest area and is primarily goldenrod and asters. There is
also penstemon and Queen Anne’s lace, which along with aster are favored plants of the Fourspotted Tree Crickets. M5 has plenty of goldenrod, some asters, Queen Anne’s lace, and also
become a little wetter with sedges closer to the Katydid Shelter. A firebreak creates the back
edge of these meadows long the south and east borders.
The areas that were repeatedly disked this summer and fall were in parts of M4 (near the
driveway), M6, and the southernmost part of M5 and M6.
Additional survey areas included the power line corridor (PLC), which likely has the greatest
cricket and katydid diversity at this time. Most of the corridor between Chagrin Road and
Washington Street runs through the park. There are woods on either side of the corridor, hedge
rows of dense shrub growth, M3 on its southeastern end near Chagrin Road and somewhat
wetter areas at the northeastern end near Washington Street.
The lower woods (LW) is the woodland area along the eastern side of the park from M4 up to
the power line corridor. The upper woods (UW) is north of the power line corridor, and I only
visited the edges just beyond the power line corridor.
A beautiful, vibrant prairie garden (PG) next to the parking lot was home to an assortment of
crickets and even a female Black-legged Meadow Katydid.
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Burr Marigold blooming in the wetland once rain finally returned. 9-16-12
Goldenrod currently dominates the lower meadows,
to the delight of the Black-horned Tree Crickets. 9-11-12
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Frohring Meadows: Map of the survey area
UW
W
LW
PLC
M4
W2
M3
W1
M2
W3
M1
PG
M6
M5
Wetlands: W1, W2, W3
Lower and Upper Woods: LW and UW
Meadow Areas: M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M6
Power Line Corridor: PLC
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Prairie Garden: PG
Disked areas are visible on map
ORCHARD HILLS IN 2012
Habitats and changes since 2008
Orchard Hills is even younger than Frohring Meadows and was until quite recently Orchard Hills
Golf Course. Orchard Hills Park opened to the public in late 2010, and Patterson’s Fruit Farm
continues to maintain an apple orchard near the parking lot.
Extensive habitat restoration includes two restored wetlands areas and stream restoration for
tributaries to the Chagrin River. Some of the former golf course fairways are gradually being
reforested. The dismantling of the front and back ponds, the construction of the wetlands, and
the stream restoration took place in 2010. The initial plantings were done later in the fall of
that year.
Thanks to the new plantings, the restoration areas are already are rich in wildflowers. Wetland
plants struggled in the hot, dry conditions of summer, 2012. Although the park district’s Land
Managers worked as hard as possible to help the young trees through this brutal summer, the
drought was very hard on them. Many lost their leaves and some did not survive.
Because of the heat, drought, and newness of the habitat restoration, this year’s survey is
essentially a baseline for the crickets and katydid present at the beginning of the restoration
process. Changes are already beginning to manifest and there will certainly be significant – and
positive - changes in the future. My primary focus was the restoration areas, but the McIntosh
Trail that crosses the former fairways also gave me access to areas and perspectives I did not
have in 2008.
Survey areas and description
My survey route began with the wetland areas near the parking lot and then followed the
McIntosh Trail. The restoration areas are numbered according to the sequence in which they
would be encountered on this route.
Wetland 1 (W1): East of the parking lot. This wetland held water when nowhere else was able
to do so. There are a great many cattails in the wetland itself, and sedges, rushes, and other
lower vegetation along its edges. It is surrounded by wildflower plantings.
Wetland 2 (W2): North of the parking lot and driveway. This broad, shallow wetland became
almost completely dry in the summer; the mud flats were cracked and parched. Areas of sedges
and rushes border it, and it, too, has dense wildflower plantings at its edges.
There are four stream restoration areas on the north and northwestern area of the park.
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Restoration Area 1 (R1) is at the northern edge of the park and is not on the McIntosh Trail. A
golf course pond was removed here when the stream course was restored. Wet meadow and
streamside plants are along the stream bank and dense wildflower plantings fill this open,
sunny area. Small willows, red-osier dogwood, and newly-planted trees are also present. This
area will most certainly come to support a diverse array of insects
Restoration Area 2 (R2) is off the McIntosh Trail where it takes a sharp turn to the south; a
restored stream area goes west into the woods here. Accessibility is difficult in the day and
dangerous at night. Already becoming lush and beautiful, it nonetheless was not an area that I
could survey as thoroughly as I would have liked.
Restoration Area 3 (R3) is accessible from the McIntosh Trail. It is open, sunny, and includes
both wet meadow and drier wildflower area planting before becoming shady as it descends into
the woods. The wet, shadier area is a favorable location for meadow katydids.
Restoration Area 4 (R4) is wetter and more shaded. It, too, is crossed by the McIntosh Trail and
is at the edge of wooded areas.
I labeled the areas along the McIntosh Trail as Mc1, Mc2, Mc3, Mc4 and Mc5 (see map). I also
walked the Pine Warbler Trail (PW) and the White Pine Trail (WP) at times. I made a few visits
to the fishing pond area (FP).
The PL designation simply refers to the parking lot area and the lodge
Stream restoration area at Orchard Hills on 8-28-12. This will become excellent katydid habitat.
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Map of the survey area
R1
Mc3
Mc4
R2
Mc2
R3
R4
PW
Mc1
Mc5
WP
W2
W1
FP
PL
Wetlands: W1, W2
Stream Restoration Areas: R1, R2, R3, R4
McIntosh Trail: Mc1, Mc2, Mc3, Mc4, Mc5
PW: Pine Warbler Trail
WP: White Pine Trail
PL: Parking Lot and Shelters
FP: Fishing Pond
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SPECIES ACCOUNTS FOR BOTH PARKS: KATYDIDS
Tettigoniiadae: the katydids
Katydids are a diverse groups of insects that they may not seem even to be related. Meadow
Katydids look like small, delicate grasshoppers with very long antennae. Bush Katydids,
Anglewing Katydids, Round-winged Katydids, and Oblong-winged Katydids look like the green
leaves on which they live. Shieldback Katydids look like little armored vehicles when compared
with meadow katydids, and Coneheads have…coneheads! Their habitats range from the
ground to the tops of trees. Most of their songs are at high frequencies that sound to humans
like scrapes, ticks, and soft whirrs. Some are barely audible to us, while others – especially the
Common True Katydid - can seem loud.
Meadow katydids
Meadow Katydids belong to two genera: Conocephalus and Orchelimum. These small katydids
resemble slender grasshoppers with long antennae. They typically are found in grasses, sedges,
and other herbaceous perennials, though an occasional Black-legged Meadow Katydid may be
found singing in a shrub. Meadow Katydids tend to prefer damper habitats and some are found
almost exclusively around ponds, marshes, and in other wet areas. Drier areas are far more
favorable for grasshoppers.
Conocephalus
Katydids in this genus are small and are often mistaken for grasshoppers. One can quickly tell
the meadow katydids from the grasshoppers by their antennae: meadow katydids have very
long antennae and grasshopper antennas are short and thicker. Their songs are light and very
high, sounding like soft “tics” and “whirrs.” Females have straight ovipositors that can be very
long in some species.
Short-winged Meadow Katydids (Conocephalus brevipennis) are our most frequentlyencountered and adaptable meadow katydids in NE Ohio. The males are easy to identify
because of their yellow-orange abdomens. The females’ moderate length ovipositors are quite
visible because their wings are short. Short-winged Meadow Katydids were present in modest
numbers at Frohring and in small numbers at Orchard Hills.
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Short-winged Meadow Katydids at Orchard Hills: male, 9-2-12 and female, 8-28-12.
Slender Meadow Katydids (Conocephalus fasciatus) definitely prefer grassier areas. These
green meadow katydids have long, slender, light brown wings that are the color of dried grass.
The combination of bright green and pale, dry brown blends well with grasses, and the slender
bodies allow their bodies to hide nicely in the texture. The females’ ovipositors are not very
noticeable because their long wings cover them.
Slender Meadow Katydids were more common at both parks than were Short-winged Meadow
Katydids. They were quite abundant in the grass and sedges near the wetlands at Frohring and
were found in many areas of the park. Slender Meadow Katydids had been present at Orchard
Hills in 2008, but in a localized area in the tall grass near the front pond. I thought that perhaps
the elimination of the pond and construction of the wetland would have eliminated them, but
they actually seemed to be much more numerous and widespread than in the past.
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Female Slender Meadow Katydid, Frohring Meadows, 7-22-12.
I found one female nymph each of the Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus strictus)
and the Long-tailed Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus attenuatus).
The Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid is a small katydid that seems to prefer drier, more upland
areas than the other meadow katydids. The males have very short wings but not the yelloworange abdomen of the Short-Winged Meadow Katydid, and the cerci are long and
comparatively straight. The females have extremely long ovipositors.
I was quite surprised to find a female Straight-lanced nymph on August 1st in Orchard Hills’
Restoration area 3, which is part of the stream restoration. However, parts of this area are
quite dry before the descent to the small stream. In 2008 I found a population of these little
katydids in the borrow pit area on the north edge of the park property that borders the closed
landfill, so they are in the area. I did not find her – or any other Straight-lanced Meadow
Katydids again this year. Notice her very long ovipositor in the photo below.
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Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid female nymph at Orchard Hills on 8-1-12.
The Long-tailed Meadow Katydid is a wetland species that is unusually colored; these katydids
are reddish brown rather than green. I had only seen this species in one other location: the
beaver marsh at Burton Wetlands. A NE Ohio nature photographer, Jerry Jelinek, also sent me
a photo of one he found at North Chagrin.
I found the female nymph in the photograph below at Frohring Meadows while scanning the
edge of Wetland 2 with my flashlight. She was on a cattail, which is where I would expect to
find this katydid if the species were present. What was unusual was that the wetland area was
completely dry and the plants already stressed from the drought. I wondered if she would
successfully reach adulthood and breed in these conditions. Repeated searches on subsequent
dates did not turn up any additional sightings.
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid female in the dry wetlands at Frohring Meadows on 8-5-12.
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Orchelimum
Meadow katydids in this genus are larger than Conocephalus meadow katydids and have a
slightly stockier body shape. Their songs are also a little louder and easier to detect. The males
of our three Orchelimum species – the Gladiator Meadow Katydids, Common Meadow Katydid,
and Black-legged meadow Katydid – all have bright yellow cerci. The females have curved
ovipositors.
Gladiator Meadow Katydid shows off his bright yellow cerci. Frohring Meadows, 7-16-12.
Black-legged Meadow Katydid’s curved ovipositor. Orchard Hills, 8-23-12.
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Gladiator Meadow Katydids (Orchelimum gladiator) are wet meadow and marsh residents who
mature earlier than other meadow katydids. They are bright green with light brown in their
thorax area and they blend beautifully with rushes and sedges in their wet meadow homes.
Gladiators matured even earlier than usual this year, with the first individuals recorded on June
19th at Frohring and June 22nd at Orchard Hills. At Frohring, Gladiators were in the wetland
areas (especially Wetland 1, which had quite a few) and at the lower, damper end of the power
line corridor. They were present in this same section of the power line corridor in 2008.
I only found one Gladiator Meadow Katydid at Orchard Hills, and he was in one of the new
wetlands. I had not recorded them in 2008, though my survey may have begun after they had
finished for the season.
Gladiator Meadow Katydids hide well in rushes and sedges. Frohring Meadows, 6-26-12.
20
Black-legged Meadow Katydids (Orchelimum nigripes) are found specifically in wet areas and
around ponds, though occasionally one can be found in a shrub or small tree in damp areas.
These colorful katydids do indeed have black legs but also have accents of yellow, blue/green
and cream. This species replaces the Gladiators, generally maturing in August. .Their bright
colors seem to work well with the late summer and autumn vegetation colors. This year the
first Black-legged Meadow Katydids were heard on July 22nd at Frohring – again, quite early –
and August 1st at Orchard Hills.
Black-legged Meadow Katydids were scattered and never abundant at Frohring in spite of the
excellent habitat. Drought may have been a factor this year, as the wetlands were parched and
cracked for many weeks. There were a couple in W2 and also in W3, and a few more in W1.
One sang at the edge of M4 where it adjoins the woods and one was actually just inside the
woods.
There were more Black-leggeds than Gladiators at Orchard Hills, but still just one or two
individuals in each wetland or restoration area. One sang in a blackberry tangle where the
former golf course path had been, and one or two more were present at the fishing pond.
Black-legged Meadow Katydid singing in the Frohring wetlands on 9-16-12.
21
Common Meadow Katydids (Orchelimum vulgare) actually are NOT a species I commonly find in
Geauga, Lake, Summit, and Cuyahoga Counties. They mature later than the Gladiator Meadow
Katydids and are more likely to be in drier, more upland meadow habitats. Their eyes tend to
appear reddish-orange and, like the other Orchelimum in our area, the males have yellow cerci.
I recorded one singing at Frohring Meadows at the Chagrin edge of M5 and was relatively
certain I heard another in M6.
The mystery meadow katydid in the Frohring Meadows woods
What field season would be complete without a mystery or two? While walking through the
lower woods between the power line corridor and M4 on 7/22, I heard a meadow katydid song.
It was generally one “tic” - sometimes two – and then a “whirr.” What was absolutely peculiar
is that the song was coming from far above my head in a younger maple! I tried every angle to
possible to get closer, but my highly-directional shotgun microphone directed my attention
almost straight up. I circled around the tree and tried to locate the singer with my flashlight but
could not. It was clearly up in the branches.
I was able to record it and read the sonogram, and it was nothing I recognized. There is a
Woodland Meadow Katydid in Ohio, but it is a species that is at the edge of the woods in low
vegetation – and it is a species that can be found late in the season. Also, the song of the
mystery singer simply did not match that of the Woodland Meadow Katydid
I recorded this katydid again on 7/31. It was the same location but it may have been in a
different tree. In fact, there were actually two of these katydids singing! Unfortunately, there
was also a great deal of industrial noise on both of these dates.
I have no other information on these katydids, and I do not know if they were a Conocephalus
or an Orchelimum species. I suspect they were an Orchelimum because I could hear the song
even up there in the tree; Conocephalus meadow katydids sing more softly.
“Mystery Meadow Katydid” singing in a tree in the Frohring woods on July 31 st at 67 degrees.
The lower part of the sonogram shows Common True Katydids and tree crickets also singing
above me. The meadow katydid’s songs are the brief, high frequency bursts of activity in the
upper part of the sonogram. The primary pitch frequencies are between 10,000 and 12,000 hZ.
22
Conehead katydids: Neoconocephalus
Conehead Katydids are substantial insects similar in size to the bush katydids. They typically are
found in meadows, fields, and wetland areas. They are long and slender, and can be identified
to species by their songs and by the shape and amount of black on the tips of their “cones.”
Most are green, but some species also have occasional brown individuals. I found brown
Round-tipped Coneheads at Frohring this year.
Sword-bearing Coneheads (Neoconcephalus ensiger) are so common in NE Ohio that I expect to
hear a different individual every 12 to 15 feet when walking on a meadow path at night in late
July and August. They eat grass seeds, sing from grass stems and other heavy-stemmed
meadow plants, and often point conehead down so that they can drop straight down into the
vegetation if threatened. Once they do so, they are very difficult to find because they blend so
effectively with their dense, leafy surroundings.
Sword-bearing Coneheads were widespread in the meadows and wetland areas at Frohring.
They were common in the grassy areas at Orchard Hills. I also found a few in stream
restoration areas R1 and R3 and in Wetland 2. They began singing extremely early this year. I
heard the first one at Frohring on July 5th and at Orchard Hills on July 6th. I wondered how late
into the season they would sing, having matured so early. By mid-August, their numbers
seemed to have decreased. The last time I heard a few individuals at Orchard Hills was August
26th and a couple at Frohring on September 13th. On some nights I did not hear them at all.
Female Sword-bearing Conehead singing in Wetland 2 at Orchard Hills on 7-23-21.
23
This male Sword-bearing Conehead was singing next to the female in the previous photo.
Round-tipped Coneheads (Neoconocephalus retusus) were a most unexpected discovery when
I first heard this conehead at Burton Wetland in 2010. Range maps do not show this species in
the northern half of Ohio. After my initial discovery of this species at Burton Wetlands in 2010,
Geauga Park District naturalist Linda Gilbert found one on her property in South Russell.
Although not numerous, in 2011 both Linda and I found Round-tipped Coneheads singing at
locations all around the Burton Wetlands meadow and at other NE Ohio meadows as well.
Because of my experience with Round-tipped Coneheads the past two years, I wondered when
– not if - they might appear at Frohring Meadows. Patience was necessary, however, because
they mature later than the other coneheads. I finally heard their first high, penetrating
electrical buzz on August 31st. They seemed to mature almost as a group, as I heard those first
songs in M2, M3, M4, and M6 as well as W3 on that first night of Round-tipped song. Soon they
were singing in almost all the meadow areas, the power line corridor, and Wetlands 1 and 3.
This southern Ohio species is becoming very well established, and they were still singing on the
last day of my survey (October 4th).
24
Round-tipped Conehead at Frohring meadows on 9-11-12.
This was the first year I saw the brown color form as well as the green form I’d expected.
Brown individuals were much less common, but I found at least a few. I was surprised that the
bronzy-brown ones blend into their surroundings as well as they do!
Round-tipped Conehead, brown form, at Frohring meadows on 9-5-12.
25
I did not necessarily expect to find Round-tipped Coneheads as far north as Orchard Hills, and I
did not – until October 1st. I certainly had not expected to add any new species to the Orchard
Hills list at that point, but suddenly one was singing in Mc1. I subsequently heard at least one
and possibly two other males that afternoon.
Two additional conehead species are now documented for the Geauga Parks. Last year, I found
a Slightly-musical Conehead at Burton Wetlands. This is another conehead that is common in
central and southern Ohio but not on the range map for northern Ohio. This year, I found a
Nebraska Conehead in the power line corridor at Frohring. Until now, I had only seen and
heard Nebraska Coneheads in Lorain County and on Kelley’s Island. Interestingly, Geauga Park
District employee Sandy Ward found and identified one on her property near Chardon as well.
The Frohring power line corridor Nebraska Conehead did not make photo documentation easy
for me. He moved around among the buckthorns surrounding one of the electrical towers and
dove completely out of sight when I got too close.
Nebraska Conehead in the Frohring power line corridor buckthorn
on 8-2-12 – just before he dove out of sight.
26
This is definitely a species that was much easier to record than to photograph! I recorded this
conehead’s harsh, high, strident buzz on August 2nd and may have heard one farther away on a
subsequent trip to the power line corridor area.
Nebraska Conehead singing in the power line corridor on 8-2-12.
False katydids
The so-called “False Katydids” resemble Common True Katydids. These include the genera
Amblycorypha, Microcentrum, and Scudderia. Some, such as the Greater Anglewing
(Microcentrum rhombifolium), are common in trees while katydids in the genus Scudderia are
found in meadow vegetation and shrubs. The meadows at Frohring provide extensive habitat
for four Scudderia species: the Broad-winged Bush Katydid, Curve-tailed Bush Katydid, Forktailed Bush Katydid, and Texas Bush Katydid. Additionally, this was the first year I found the
Northern Bush Katydid
Amblychorypha
Oblong-winged Katydids (Amblychorypha oblongifolia) are generally residents of smaller trees
and shrubs. I find them in hedge rows and in the understory of woodland edges. When I find
them in meadow areas, they are generally along the edges of the meadow.
This species seemed practically absent last year but was quite plentiful this year. Did last year’s
relentless heavy rain batter these katydids, and did the hot weather this year encourage them?
They were one of the only katydid species I was able to find rather regularly at Orchard Hills,
and they were common at Frohring for weeks.
The Rattler Round-winged Katydids (Amblychoripha rotundifolia) I came to expect at Burton
Wetlands were not present at Frohring Meadows, however. I thought that the power line
corridor would provide suitable habitat for this species, but I never heard or saw them.
27
Male Oblong-winged Katydid at Frohring Meadows on 7-16-12.
This female oblong-winged Katydid in the Frohring woods on 8-24-12
may have been the same one I photographed in that exact spot on 7-31.
28
Microcentrum
Greater Anglewings (Microcentrum rhombifolium) are treetop residents that generally seem to
mature later in August. They matured earlier this year and were quite common throughout our
area right into early October. They were still singing on October 3rd at Orchard Hills and October
4th at Frohring.
Greater Anglewings also seemed to be more numerous than usual and I heard many of them on
a regular basis at both Frohring and Orchard Hills. In fact, at Orchard Hills I was able to
photograph a male and a female in the red-twig dogwoods next to the lodge!
This male and female Greater Anglewing were together in the red-osier
dogwoods below on the night of 8-26. His songs to her echoed in the pavilion.
29
The same Orchard Hills Greater Anglewings: female above and male below. 8-26-12.
30
Scudderia: the bush katydids
Bush Katydids generally are found in meadows, around ponds, wetlands, and edge habitats. All
of the four Scudderia species common in meadows were present at Frohring, and the treedwelling Northern Bush Katydid was in the woods not far from the meadow. Scudderia species
males can be distinguished from each other by their songs and by their tail plates, if visible.
Females have somewhat differently-shaped ovipositors.
The Broad-winged Bush Katydid (Scudderia pistillata) matures before the others and was
singing even earlier than usual this year. Although they generally persist into August, their
numbers at Frohring seemed lower than expected and their season shorter. I did not find that
at Orchard Hills at all. Did the hot, dry weather affect them? We are at the southern edge of
their range, and their meadow and shrub plants were adversely affected by this year’s heat and
drought.
Curve-tailed Bush Katydids (Scudderia curvicauda) are named for the female’s curved
ovipositor. They mature while the Broad-winged Bush Katydids are still singing, and typically
are abundant in NE Ohio. I was therefore surprised to find significantly fewer than I would have
expected at Frohring and only a few individuals at Orchard Hills.
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid female in a woodland opening at Frohring Meadows on 7-12-12.
31
Heat and drought could have affected these katydids as well, but more than one year of
information would be necessary to determine if weather alone was the determining factor.
Both parks are also still “new” and habitats are in the process of being restored.
This Scudderia bush katydid is the only one I photographed at Orchard Hills. I believe it
Was a Curve-tailed Bush Katydid, which is the only Scudderia species I heard there. 7-23-12
The Texas Bush Katydid (Scudderia texensis) shares the same habitat as the other Scudderia,
and was far more common at Frohring than the Broad-winged and Curve-tailed Bush Katydids.
Texas Bush Katydids mature later in the season and generally seem to replace the Broadwinged Bush Katydids in the late-summer meadows. In the past, I have always seen and heard
more Broad-winged Bush Katydids than Texas Bush Katydids.
Texas Bush Katydids, however, seemed to mature a little early and were in larger numbers than
I had seen or heard in other meadows during previous years. This year, they also seemed to be
more common at Burton Wetlands than the past two years. Perhaps conditions were more
favorable for them. These katydids were in all the meadow areas at Frohring, and they were
still singing on October 4th. However, I found no Texas Bush Katydids at Orchard Hills.
32
Male Texas Bush Katydid at Frohring on 9-16-12.
Female Texas Bush Katydid at Frohring on 9-13-12.
Note the sharp upward curve of her ovipositor.
33
Male Scudderia can generally be identified by their songs, but the most definitive
identification is by the tail plate (below his wings). Texas Bush Katydid at Frohring on 9-16-12.
The Fork-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia furcata) is a little smaller than the Broad-winged,
Curve-tailed, and Texas Bush Katydids and is likely to be found in shrubs. The females have a
richly-colored pinkish-purple ovipositor, and the male’s tail plate is a similar color. The song is
quite undistinguished: a simple, repeated “Pfffitt!” They were not common, but I did find them
from time to time at Frohring and Orchard Hills.
Female Fork-tailed Bush Katydid at Frohring on 8-2-12.
34
The Northern Bush Katydid (Scudderia septentrionalis) was a new species for me this year. I
first encountered these small Scudderia at Linda Gilbert’s South Russell property and thought
that they might be present at nearby Frohring Meadows as well. I had noted their attraction to
lights at Linda’s property and decided to see if I could bring them in with lights at Frohring. I
went to the edge of the upper woods near the power line corridor and propped a couple of
bright flashlights on the park bench there. Success!
Northern Bush Katydid male on the back of the park bench in the Frohring woods. He was
attracted to the two flashlights I had placed on this bench to shine up into the trees on 7-22-12.
35
Common True Katydid: Pterophylla
The Common True Katydid (Pterophylla camellifolia) is a large, leaf-shaped, green insect with an
easily-identifiable loud, raspy call that seems to suggest “Katy did! Katy didn’t!” These treetop
residents do not fly, and if a storm knocks them down they must climb all the way back to the
treetops. This katydid is raucous singer generally heard in taller trees in wooded areas and tree
lines, but they can be present even in large individual trees that are not in the woods.
At both Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills, Common True Katydids were present in the
wooded areas, in tree lines, and at the wooded edges of meadows. I first heard their distinctive
songs at Orchard Hills on 7-15 and Frohring Meadows on 7/16 – earlier than usual. Some were
singing in to early October if the evening temperatures were warm enough.
Shieldback katydids
Our native shieldback katydids look quite different from the meadow and bush katydids.
Although not very large, these bronzy-brown katydids look like plump little armored vehicles.
Most katydids eat primarily plants, but these carnivorous katydids eat small insects and spiders.
They mature rather early and can be found near woodland edges.
Atlanticus
I do not find native Shieldback Katydids every year, but this year was quite a fortunate one:
I located Least Shieldbacks (Atlanticus monticola) at Orchard Hills and at Frohring just a day
apart (July 5th and July 6th).. It was the first time I had ever closely watched one sing and was
amazed that they could produce sound with those stubby little wings.
Least Shieldback at Orchard Hills on 7-6-12.
36
Least Shieldback singing at Frohring Meadows on 7-5-12.
Metrioptera
The non-native Roesel’s Katydid (Metrioptera roeselii) is a European introduction that rapidly
expanded in the northeastern United States since its introduction in the early 1950s. It can now
be found west to Illinois. Although most individuals have short wings, some males and females
have long wings necessary for range-expanding flight.
These attractive little shieldback katydids prefers damp areas of tall grasses or sedges rather
than goldenrod/asters meadows. They mature earlier than the native meadow katydids whose
habitat they share (primarily Slender Meadow Katydids), and they do not appear to compete
with our native species.
37
I found Roesel’s Katydid nymphs at Frohring Meadows on May 21st and adults were singing
there by June 7th. Orchard Hills had many nymphs present even earlier on May 14th. A few
years ago, early-instar nymphs appeared in what seemed to be worrisome numbers at Orchard
Hill. The numbers I saw this year did not seem unusual at all, and they were finished by the end
of June.
Male Roesel’s Katydid at Frohring on 6-7-12. They are not very large.
Female Roesel’s Katydid at Orchard Hills on 6-22-12.
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Drumming Katydid: Meconema
The Drumming Katydid (Meconema thalassinum) is an unusual little non-native species whose
sound production is completely different from our other katydids – it taps its hind foot on a
leaf. It seems to like oaks, and I previously had only found it in our Cleveland Heights front
porch. (The house is a 1920s bungalow under two large pin oaks.) However, Linda Gilbert had
also found this species on her oaks near her South Russell house, so it seemed possible that I
could find this katydid at Frohring - or perhaps even at Orchard Hills.
About the time I found one on my porch this year, I decided to check around one of the old
Orchard Hills golf course shelters next to the woods. It seemed like the shelter might
approximate my porch, and this is exactly where I found a Drumming Katydid!
Female Drumming Katydid in a former golf course shelter at Orchard Hills on 7-23-21.
39
SPECIES ACCOUNTS FOR BOTH PARKS: CRICKETS
Grillidae: the crickets
This report documents five categories of crickets that are visually quite distinct: field crickets,
bush crickets, ground crickets, tree crickets, and sword-tailed crickets (also known as Trigs, as
they are in the subfamily Trigonidiinae). All are small insects with long antennae. Like the
katydids, these insects can be found from the ground to the treetops. Their songs are generally
perceived as having pitch rather than consisting of the more percussive sounds of the katydids.
This is a result of their songs being lower in pitch than those of most katydids; consequently,
they are easier for humans to hear and typically sound more musical to us.
Field crickets: Gryllus
Field crickets are considerably larger than the tiny ground crickets. They generally sing from
hidden locations under leaves, stones, branches, and other inaccessible places that create good
resonance while still keeping the singers safely hidden. They are easy to hear but very difficult
to find. They generally prefer drier areas; if I found them in a wetland or restoration area, they
were higher up where the soil was drier or mixed with gravel.
Our two Northeast Ohio field cricket species are the Spring Field Cricket (Gryllus veletis) and
the more common Fall Field Cricket (Gryllus pennsylvanicus). They are distinguishable only by
the time of year in which they sing. Once thought to be a single species, they share the same
habitat and their songs are identical. Spring Field Crickets typically begin singing in late April or
early May and finish their season in early July. Fall Field Crickets then begin to sing later in July
and continue through September. They do not seem to overlap with the Spring Field Crickets,
and there is generally a period of a few weeks when no field crickets sing.
This year presented an interesting challenge, however. Most cricket and katydid species
started singing at least two weeks early. So were the field crickets singing in the first week of
July the last of the Spring Field Crickets…or the first early Fall Field Crickets? I heard what I
decided were the first Fall Field Crickets on July 6th at Orchard Hills and July 9th at Frohring
Meadows. Their numbers steadily increased from that date.
The spring-or-fall question was only relevant at Orchard Hills, as I did not find Spring Field
Crickets at Frohring Meadows. Fall Field Crickets were common at Frohring, and I do not know
why Spring Field Crickets were not present there as well. Their numbers dwindled earlier than I
would have expected and I heard very few – and sometimes none at all – in late September and
early October. Did their early beginning result in an early completion time?
40
In 2008, there were only a few Fall Field Crickets at Orchard Hills except for the borrow pit area
on the other side of the ravine and stream; there, they were quite common. Now, however,
Fall Field Crickets can be heard in all areas of the park. Spring Field Crickets were only found in a
couple of isolated pockets, but they had not been present in 2008. As at Frohring, their
numbers dwindled earlier than I would have expected. I continued to hear them into early
October at Orchard Hills.
Male Fall Field Cricket at Orchard Hills on 10-1-12.
Bush crickets: Orocharis
The Jumping Bush Cricket (Orocharis saltator) is a native cricket that has been expanding its
range northward. In 2011, I wrote:
Jumping Bush Crickets, which are common in urban and suburban areas, do not appear
to be present in rural Geauga County. This species appears to be gradually moving
north, however, and I have found them in Bainbridge, Chesterland, and at Routes 87 and
306. For the first time this year, one was singing close to Burton Wetlands on GPD
naturalist Linda Gilbert’s property in South Russell, so this species may be gradually
moving into the Snow Belt. Jumping Bush Crickets already are very common in the
woods of Pond Brook Conservation Area in the Twinsburg/Aurora area of Summit
County.
41
I knew it was only a matter of time until I would hear them at one of the Geauga Park District
locations. When I started hearing them at other locations (such as Holden Arboretum and
North Chagrin Nature Center) I began to listen for how close to Frohring Meadows and Orchard
Hills they could be found. I heard them singing on private property on Wilson Mills a little west
of County Line Road (and west of Orchard Hills) but I also heard them near the intersection of
Savage Road and Chagrin Road. If they were this close to Frohring Meadows, might they
actually be within the park itself?
I decided to walk the fire break at the south edge of the park, hoping to get as close to the
intersection as I could in an area that has trees and shrubs (as Jumping Bush Crickets sing from
trees and shrubs). I did indeed hear them singing along the fire break on September 13th,
though the incessant traffic on Chagrin made obtaining a good recording impossible. I expect
that soon they will expand into the woods at Frohring, as they have done to the southwest at
Pond Brook Conservation Area.
Jumping Bush Crickets are a native species and simply have not always been this far north in the
state. Their northward movement should not be a problem and we can enjoy their lovely belllike trills.
Ground crickets
Ground crickets are the common small, dark crickets found on paths, in grasses, and around
low vegetation. Crickets of the genus Allonemobius are tiny, Carolina Ground Crickets are
tinier, and the Cuban Ground Crickets are the tiniest of all. Orchard Hills has very impressive
numbers of ground crickets everywhere. They were certainly well-represented in 2008, but
their numbers have greatly increased. The former fairways, the restoration areas, and the
wetland edges all provide excellent habitat for these singers. Frohring Meadows also has a
strong representation of all the ground cricket species.
Eunemobius
The Carolina Ground Cricket (Eunemobius carolinus) is the most abundant ground crickets and
can be found almost anywhere. Theirs is the last NE Ohio insect song heard in the late fall –
sometimes even after an early snow has melted I heard the first individual’s song on June 28th
at Frohring - about three weeks early - and on July 6th at Orchard Hills. These tough little
crickets were still singing in great numbers in early October.
Allonemobius
The Allard’s Ground Cricket (Allonemobius allardi), prefers open, drier habitats, and the Striped
Ground Cricket (Allonemobius fasciatus), prefers a somewhat damper to almost wet
environment. However, it is not uncommon to find both species in the same habitat – and even
42
singing next to each other. The Allonemobius crickets look very similar, but fortunately it is
much easier to tell them apart by song than by appearance.
Allonemobius ground crickets began singing just a few days after the Carolina Ground Crickets.
I first recorded Striped Ground Crickets singing on July 5th at Frohring Meadows followed by
Allard’s Ground Crickets singing on July 9th. Both dates were about two weeks early. I recorded
both species on July 6th at Orchard Hills. They were still very active in early October, as the
warm earth helped compensate for the falling temperatures.
Male Allard’s Ground Cricket at Frohring Meadows on 10-4-12.
Striped Ground Crickets were present in large numbers around the Frohring wetlands and
actually in the wetlands. Because of the drought, crickets could move freely throughout the
entire area until rain finally arrived in the fall.
43
In many areas at both parks, all four ground cricket species could be found together. Drier
areas were generally more likely to have Allard’s Ground Crickets that damper ones, but I was
surprised by the number of times I found Allard’s Ground Crickets near wetlands. This was
especially true at Orchard Hills, as dry, wildflower areas slope down into the restoration areas.
Striped Ground Crickets at Orchard Hills on 10-1-12: two males (above) and a female (below).
44
Neonemobius
The Cuban Ground Cricket (Neonemobius cubensis) is one of the most common crickets at
Frohring Meadows and at Orchard Hills. Although it does not yet appear in our area on range
maps for the species, it is actually quite abundant throughout Geauga, Cuyahoga, Lake, and
Summit Counties. This tiny cricket - shown in range maps as a more eastern and southern
species - is actually one of the most common crickets encountered in the Geauga Park District
parks and preserves. They are also common in Cuyahoga, Summit, and Lake Counties and I
have found them in Medina and Lorain Counties as well. I recently saw photo documentation
of what appears to be the same species in Illinois. I suspect it has been overlooked both
because it is very small and because its smooth silvery song easily blends in behind the overall
texture of ground cricket song. It is not soft – in fact, these tiny singers generate quite a bit of
sound. However, the nature of the song makes it difficult to distinguish from all the other
sounds around it. The song also resembles that of the Say’s Trig, and one could easily assume
that this is the song being heard.
At Frohring Meadows, I found them in every area except the woods, including every section of
the meadows. I heard the first one at Frohring on July 31st – the earliest I have heard them to
date - and August 7th at Orchard Hills. As with the Carolina Ground Crickets, a great many of
them still were singing in early October. When temperatures dropped sharply in the evening,
these diminutive crickets and the Carolina Ground Crickets were the only insects who continued
to sing.
Cuban Ground Cricket male at Orchard Hills in stream restoration area 1 on 10-4-12.
45
Tree crickets
Very different in appearance from ground and field crickets, tree crickets are more elongated
and generally pale green instead of brown or black. This coloration corresponds with the trees,
shrubs, and meadow vegetation they inhabit. All but the Two-spotted Tree Cricket (Neoxabea
bipunctata) are in the genus Oecanthus.
Oecanthus
The tree crickets most commonly encountered in Ohio’s goldenrod and aster-filled meadows
are the Black-horned Tree Cricket (Oecanthus nigricornis) and the Four-spotted Tree Cricket
(Oecanthus quadripunctatus). In fact, I often describe Black-horned Tree Crickets as the “Voice
of the Meadow” because of the great numbers singing in the goldenrod in August and
September. They also sing from blackberries, dogwoods, and other plants and are more likely
than the Four-spotted Tree Crickets to be heard around wetlands. I have watched them
oviposit in goldenrod and blackberry.
Four-spotted Tree Crickets mature a little earlier than the Black-horned Tree Crickets and tend
to favor slightly drier areas. They are more common in asters than goldenrod and can often be
found in Queen Anne’s lace, penstemon (if present) and other meadow vegetations. They can
occasionally be found in small shrubs as well.
Black-horned Tree Crickets and Four-spotted Tree Crickets can –and often do – sing very close
to each other, and their songs are so similar that they are sometimes described as inseparable.
Their pitches are generally the same if they are singing at the same temperature in the same
conditions. The difference between the species’ songs is more apparent at cooler
temperatures, as the Four-spotted’s song has fewer wing strokes per second. Four-spotted
Tree Crickets seem to sing later into the evening and at cooler temperatures than the Blackhorned Tree Crickets. If only one species is still singing as temperatures drop, it most likely will
be the Four-spotted.
Four-spotted Tree Crickets matured much earlier than usual this year, but Black-horned Tree
Crickets were only a little ahead of schedule. I expect to hear singing male Four-spotted Tree
Crickets in late July, but the first one I heard at Frohring was on July 12th and the first at Orchard
Hills was July 15th. I confirmed the first Black-horned Tree Cricket at Frohring on August 3rd,
though one may have been in the Prairie Garden as early as July 22nd. I searched for days for
this species at Orchard Hills but could not confirm their presence until August 23rd. They may
have been there earlier, but every singing tree cricket I could locate in the open areas was a
Four-spotted.
The distribution of these crickets clearly reflects the differences in the habitats of Frohring
Meadows and Orchard Hills. Frohring’s vast meadow area areas are inviting to both species.
46
Areas that border – or are even just within – the wetlands provide habitat for Black-horned
Tree Crickets. As is often the case, I found primarily Black-horned Tree Crickets in the
goldenrod and Four-spotted Tree Crickets in the asters. Plenty of both were present, and the
Four-spotted Tree Crickets had Queen Anne’s lace and penstemon. Black-horned Tree crickets
were common in the wetlands’ burr marigolds, and Four-spotted Tree Crickets could be found
farther away from the edges and on the raised area between W2 and W3. There is plenty of
drier, upland meadow habitat in M5 and especially M6 for the Four-spotteds, and goldenrod
was certainly abundant in M1, M2, M3, and M4.
Black-horned Tree Cricket singing in burr marigold in one of Frohring’s wetlands on 9-21-12.
In contrast, goldenrod occurs in limited patches at Orchard Hills, and the same seems to be true
for the Black-horned Tree Crickets. Most of the “meadow crickets” I found were Four-spotteds,
47
though they, too, appeared in limited numbers along the former fairways and the areas being
reforested. The drier wildflower areas that rise above the wetlands provided habitat for both
species, but Four-spotteds were more common there as well.
Wetland 2 was the area where I consistently found Black-horned Tree Crickets beginning
August 23rd. I also found small numbers of them in the occasional areas of goldenrod present
in Mc1. They also occupied a large patch of tall smartweed at the end of Wetland 2 and were
scattered through Restoration area 3.
There were never large numbers of either species at Orchard Hills, though the Four-spotteds
could be found in most areas of the park. I expect that the numbers of both species will
increase as the newly-restored habitats mature.
This Black-horned Tree Cricket at Orchard Hills on 9-12-12
is singing atypically in an aster instead of goldenrod.
48
Four-spotted Tree Crickets at Frohring Meadows singing
in penstemon on 9-29-12 and in timothy on 7-17-12.
Four-spotted Tree Cricket at Frohring on 8-22-12.
49
Pine Tree Crickets (Oecanthus pini), not surprisingly, live in pines. They can occasionally be
found in other evergreens, and I heard them singing in the Norway spruce stand by the
Patterson’s Fruit Farm parking lot next to Orchard Hills in 2008. Orchard Hills’ extensive
numbers of white pines provide excellent habitat for these crickets, and they could be heard
from early July to early October wherever there were pine trees. I consider them to be an
essential part of this park’s sonic signature.
Pine Tree Crickets are one of the earliest tree crickets to mature in our area, and they can still
be heard singing well into October if the weather is warm enough. I first heard them on July 6th
this year, however, which is early even for Pine Tree Crickets. For much of their season they
sang only at night, but as days became shorter and temperatures cooler, they begin to sing in
the mid-afternoon.
The only stand of pines I found at Frohring Meadows was at the driveway entrance on Savage
Road. I heard Pine Tree Crickets in July across the road in large evergreens at private homes. It
seemed that if they were across the street, they surely should have traveled the short distance
to the Frohring Meadows driveway. When I took my recording equipment up to the park
entrance on August 15th, I confirmed that they were indeed singing in the park’s pines as well.
Pine Tree Cricket on a honeysuckle leaf under a white pine branch at Orchard Hills
on 9-12-12. This species’ coloration blends beautifully with pine bark and needles.
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The Snowy Tree Cricket (Oecanthus fultoni) is familiar to many people as “the temperature
cricket” because the air temperature can be determined by how often they “chirp” within a
certain period of time. According to The Songs of Insects by Lang Elliott and Wil Hershberger,
the formula is the number of chirps in 13 seconds plus 40 equals the air temperature - at least
the air right around the individual cricket. I typically find them in grapevines, blackberries, and
other tangles. They are also live in shrubs and small trees. I also generally have found them in
suburban and even relatively urban areas more often than in rural areas. They were not
present at Burton Wetlands and I did not find them at Observatory Park or Oakton Preserve.
Snowy Tree Crickets were at a couple of widely-separated areas at Orchard Hills and near the
power line corridor at Frohring Meadows. I recorded them in grape vine/blackberry tangles.
This species is also one of the early tree crickets. Although I do not have “start dates” for this
species at Frohring or Orchard Hills from 2008, this year they were certainly singing at my home
in Cleveland Heights earlier than I have ever recorded them. I first heard them at Frohring on
July 5th and at Orchard Hills on July 10th. Their season ended much earlier than I would have
expected, and I do not know why. I did not hear them at Frohring after July 31 st and heard a
few at Orchard Hills on August 26th, although I heard them at my home until early October.
Davis’s Tree Crickets (Oecanthus exclamationis) are generally an arboreal species. Although
certainly common in woods, they can also appear at woodland edges and in dogwood-filled
hedge row areas near the woods. They were part of the sonic texture in the Frohring woods
where they sang with the Two-spotted Tree Crickets and Common True Katydids. I believe they
were at Orchard Hills as well, but I could not isolate their song and confirm them to my
satisfaction. I heard the first ones at Frohring on July 15 th, just after the Two-spotted Tree
Crickets began to sing.
Narrow-winged Tree Crickets (Oecanthus niveus) often use leaves as sound enhancers, rather
like a megaphone for crickets or a band shell on a high school auditorium stage. Some males
position their bodies between two overlapping leaves while others achieve a similar effect by
using lobes and notches in an individual leaf. Others will chew a hole in a leaf, stick their heads
through the hole, and allow the leaves to act as an extension of their wings (see photos below
for examples). Although other tree crickets may also use leaves in this manner, this has been
the case for almost every Narrow-winged I have been able to locate.
51
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket singing in an oak leaf near the Katydid Shelter at Frohring on 7-31-12.
Narrow-winged Tree Crickets surprised me with the number of habitats in which I found them.
Four-spotted and Black-horned Tree Crickets are generally in the meadows. Pine Tree Crickets
are in the pines. Davis’s Tree Crickets are in trees, and Snowy Tree Crickets are in grape vine
and blackberry tangles. Narrow-winged Tree Crickets seemed to be almost anywhere – never
in large numbers, but certainly in quite a variety of habitats.
The first ones I heard were in Frohring Meadows’ beautiful prairie garden by the parking lot on
July 31st, and this remained a reliable place to find them. A number seemed to reach maturity
simultaneously and their preferred plant for singing in the prairie garden was…the common
milkweed! The males positioned themselves between large, thick leaves, using the leaves as
sound enhancers. These crickets must also be attracted to lights, as I found both males and
females on the exterior walls of the restroom and one male actually singing there. Another
favored location was one of the small oaks planted near the Katydid Shelter.
52
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket on the exterior restroom door at Frohring on 8-8-12.
I subsequently found one singing far up in M6 near the ground, using penstemon leaves as his
personal sound amplification system. They were also present in the grapevine/blackberry
tangles in the power line corridor, in Wetland 1 (the original wet meadow with willows and
other shrubs), M5 in the shrubs and fire break hedge row…they could turn up almost
anywhere!
Narrow-winged Tree Crickets were also singing at Orchard Hills by August 7th. I typically found
them in smaller trees here – either isolated individual smaller trees or in smaller trees at the
edges of a tree line or wooded area between the former fairways. Although not numerous in
any one place, they were rather widely distributed around the park. I heard them in all areas of
the McIntosh Trail, on the White Pine Trail, by the fishing pond, Wetland area 2, and in two of
the stream restoration areas.
53
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket singing in a McIntosh Trail maple at Orchard Hills on 8-26-12.
Neoxabea
Two-spotted Tree Crickets (Neoxabea bipunctata) are our only tree cricket that is not in the
genus Oecanthus. They are a little larger than the Oecanthus tree crickets and their coloration
is much different. These crickets are a beautiful mixture of reddish-brown, darker brown and
light tan. They blend in quite nicely with twigs and bark, which is appropriate for crickets that
are primarily arboreal. They can sometimes be heard in grapevine/blackberry tangles and
smaller trees or shrubs. At Frohring, I also occasionally found one feeding in meadow wetland
edges or the prairie garden at night. This is another one of the earlier tree crickets, were
singing up in the trees by July 10th at Orchard Hills and July 12th at Frohring Meadows.
54
Two-spotted Tree Cricket in the power line corridor at Frohring Meadows on 8-8-12.
Trigs (sword-tailed crickets): Trigonidiinae
Two species of trigs, or “sword-tailed crickets,” are found in Northeast Ohio: the Say’s Trig and
the Handsome Trig. The gorgeous red and black Handsome Trigs are more likely to be found in
shrubs such as dogwoods, any surviving viburnums, and buckthorn. The more subtle but
equally beautiful Say’s Trigs inhabit both shrubs and low vegetation. Both species are about
half the size of the tree crickets and sing an octave higher.
55
Anaxipha
Say’s Trigs (Anaxipha exigua) are common in wet areas and seem to be quite fond of
buttonbushes and willows. I have also found them in sedges and rushes. They are not limited
to wet areas and can be heard (and occasionally even seen) in other shrubs and lower
vegetation as well.
Say’s Trigs sang from the shrubs in localized areas at both Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills.
Like most other crickets and katydids, they began singing earlier than usual. I first heard them
at Frohring on July 19th, which is about a week and a half earlier than I would have expected.
The first individuals I heard at Orchard Hills were singing on August 1st, which seemed more
typical for this species.
Their numbers and distribution were quite limited at Orchard Hills. They were in the small
willows in two of the stream restoration areas and in one location in Mc1, and I only heard
them for about a month. Say’s Trigs were a little more common at Frohring, where I found
them in the power line corridor, the willows in Wetland 1, lower vegetation in the upper and
lower woods, M4 close to the woods, the fire break border of M5, and in the prairie garden. I
did not hear them after September 21st.
Phyllopalpus
Northeast Ohio is at the northern edge of the range of the Handsome Trig (Phyllopalpus
pulchellus). In the recent past, I have found them in northern Cuyahoga County, along Lake Erie
in Lake County, and in very limited numbers at Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills in Geauga
County. They are abundant south of Geauga County in neighboring Summit and Portage
Counties.
I did not find Handsome Trigs at either Oakton Park Preserve or Observatory Park during the
2009 survey. I searched Burton Wetlands with great care in 2010 and found none at that time.
I also checked Beartown Lakes near the southern border of Geauga County, but only Say’s Trigs
were present. Finally in 2011, I found pockets of Handsome Trigs at Burton Wetlands in areas
where there were none at all the previous year.
I assumed that Handsome Trigs would still be present at the Chagrin Road end of the power line
corridor, which is where I found a small population in 2008. What a surprise! There were
hundreds of them up and down the entire section of the power line corridor that is within
Frohring Meadows. In addition, they were singing in the shrubs at the edge of Wetland 1 and
also at the woodland edge of M4. There were small clusters in the occasional blackberry in the
upper meadow areas and they were in the fire break border vegetation along the edge of M5.
These little crickets have expanded most impressively in just four years’ time.
56
I had wondered where they might oviposit and was fortunate to watch two different power line
corridor females in the process of ovipositing – in the trunks of buckthorn!
Female Handsome Trigs in the power line corridor at Frohring Meadows on 9-11-12. The female
on the right is ovipositing in buckthorn, and she will insert her ovipositor up to her abdomen.
“Mystery Crickets” at Frohring and Orchard Hills
I was not able to identify two early crickets – one at Frohring Meadows and one at Orchard
Hills. Their songs sounded very similar, but I am not certain they were the same species.
The Frohring mystery cricket was singing a steady trill in the rush-lined drainage area of the
lower meadows on the Chagrin Road side of the trail on June 20th. This was significantly earlier
than any of our expected crickets, and it was not a species that I know.
A second mystery ground cricket appeared at Orchard Hills on July 6th. It seemed to be a
ground cricket by its habitat, and other ground crickets had just begun to sing at that time.
However, I am not familiar with any ground cricket that sings a steady trill of this nature. I
recorded its song as it sang from under a thick layer of leaf litter not far from Stream
restoration area 2 (which goes down into the ravine).
57
The two mystery crickets sounded very similar, though the sonograms from my recordings look
a bit different. The Orchard Hills cricket sounded identical to one that was singing in leaf litter
at the edge of the woods on Linda Gilbert’s South Russell property, and those sonograms
matched very well. Visually locating these mystery crickets was impossible, as they were
singing in vegetation and leaf litter on the ground at night.
Frohring mystery cricket in the rushes at M1/M2 at about 85 degrees on 6-20-12.
Temperature information is included with these recordings because the
temperature will affect the speed and pitch of a cricket or katydid’s song.
Orchard Hills mystery cricket song in the leaf litter near the woodland edge
of stream restoration area 2 on 7-6-12. The air temperature was 77 degrees.
GRASSHOPPERS
This is a survey of katydids and crickets, but it is impossible to search for these insects and not
notice the grasshoppers that share their habitats. There are far more grasshoppers than
katydids at both parks. Grasshoppers are abundant at Frohring, with impressive numbers at
Orchard Hills. They are thriving in the grassy areas of the former fairways, and are widespread
in the wetland edges and stream restoration areas. At both Frohring and Orchard Hills,
grasshoppers promptly moved in to the parched wetlands. Even when rain finally returned,
they could be found in damp areas as well as drier ones. The heat and drought did not seem to
limit these insects whatsoever. Most of the grasshoppers I observed were in the large
Melanoplus genus. A collection of grasshopper photos will be included at the end of this
report.
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INSECT SONG AND THE ISSUE OF NOISE
Human-generated noise is an ever-increasing problem when listening for and recording
katydids and crickets. People learn to filter out a certain amount unwanted sound, but a
microphone and recorder simply document what is actually present. The dense, complex
frequencies of a jet flying over will ruin any recording; the wide range of frequencies cannot be
edited out. Traffic – whether cars, trucks, or rural ATVs - generates a great deal of noise.
Frohring Meadows is a very beautiful, but the surrounding areas are very noisy. Traffic on
Chagrin and Washington is relentless, and Savage Road is used as a cut-through between them.
There was also a great deal of industrial noise on many evenings and nights during the period of
time covered by this survey. While Orchard Hills does not have as much traffic nearby, a recent
increase in private jet flights into and out of the Cuyahoga County Airport has resulted in a
great deal of aircraft noise. Frohring Meadows also experiences some of these Cuyahoga
County Airport flight patterns. In addition, hours of sonic interference are created by riding
mowers, leaf blowers, and other yard equipment along the boundaries of both parks.
Unfortunately, noise frequently contaminated my recordings of the insect songs I tried to
document. This is the most difficulty I have experienced recording for a survey report to date.
Some insects – usually crickets – will sing almost continuously. Most katydids do not. On more
than one occasion, it was not possible to obtain a good recording of an insect’s song because of
noise. The Savage Road edge of Frohring was especially loud due to some kind of industrial
noise –perhaps a well being drilled nearby or noise from the industrial park on Washington St.
The short, bright lines are Jumping Bush Crickets. The broad, dense frequency band
is traffic on Chagrin and Savage Roads, which border Frohring Meadows.
The crickets and katydids singing in the Frohring woods are barely audible because of the noise just
beyond Savage Road on the night of 7-31. I was attempting to record the mystery meadow katydids.
59
FROHRING MEADOWS KATYDID AND CRICKET SPECIES PRESENT IN 2012
(species in bold are new additions since the 2008 list)
Katydids
Short-winged Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus brevipennis) 7-31-12
Slender Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus fasciatus) 7-9-12
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus attenuatus) 8-2-12
Gladiator Meadow Katydid: (Orchelimum gladiator) first singing males 6-19-12
Common Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum vulgare) 9-13-12
Black-legged Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum nigripes)7-22-12
Common True Katydid (Pterophylla camellifolia) 7-16-12
Greater Anglewing (Microcentrum rhombifolium) 8-8-12
Oblong-winged Katydid (Amblychorypha oblongifolia) 7-12-12
Broad-winged Bush Katydid (Scudderia pistillata) 6-26-12
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia curvicauda) 7-12-12
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia furcata) 8-2-12
Texas Bush Katydid (Scudderia texensis) 8-8-12
Northern Bush Katydid (Scudderia septentrionalis) 7-16-12
Sword-bearing Conehead (Neoconocephalus ensiger) 7-5-12
Nebraska Conehead (Neoconocephalus nebrascensis) 8-2-12
Round-tipped Conehead (Neoconocephalus retusus) 8-31-12
Least Shieldback (Atlanticus monticola) 7-5-12
Roesel’s Katydid (Metrioptera roeselii) 5-21-12 (nymphs). First singing male 6-7-12
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Crickets
Fall Field Cricket (Gryllus pennsylvanicus)7-9-12 (there were no Spring Field Crickets)
Jumping Bush Cricket (Orocharis saltator) 9-13-12
Carolina Ground Cricket (Eunemobius carolinus) 6-28-12
Allard’s Ground Cricket (Allonemobius allardi) 7-9-12
Striped Ground Cricket (Allonemobius fasciatus) 7-5-12
Cuban Ground Cricket (Neonemobius cubensis) 7-31-12
Snowy Tree Cricket (Oecanthus fultoni) 7-5-12
Four-spotted Tree Cricket (Oecanthus quadripunctatus) 7-12-12
Davis’ Tree Cricket (Oecanthus exclamationis) 7-16-12
Black-horned Tree Cricket (Oecanthus nigricornis) 7-31-12
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket (Oecanthus niveus) 7-31-12
Pine Tree Crickets (Oecanthus pini) were across Savage Road on 7-5-12 and confirmed on
Frohring side of the road on 8-15-12
Two-spotted Tree Cricket (Neoxabea bipunctata) 7-12-12
Say’s Trig (Anaxipha exigua) 7-16-12
Handsome Trig (Phyllopalpus pulchellus) 7-31-12
Mystery cricket on 6-20-12 in rush-lined drainage area on M1/M2 border. I could not identify it
by song (a steady trill) and was not able to visually locate the individual. The song was early
and I did not hear it after June or perhaps very early July.
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ORCHARD HILLS KATYDID AND CRICKET SPECIES PRESENT IN 2012
(species in bold are new additions since the 2008 list)
Katydids
Short-winged Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus brevipennis) 8-7-12
Slender Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus fasciatus) 8-1-12
Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid (Conocephalus strictus) 8-1-12 (previously found only in
borrow pit area)
Gladiator Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum gladiator): 6-22-12 (singing adult) Just one in W2:
never more than this
Black-legged meadow Katydid (Orchelimum nigripes) 8-1-12
Common True Katydid (Pterophylla camellifolia) 7-15-12
Greater Anglewing (Microcentrum rhombifolium) 8-14-12
Sword-bearing Conehead (Neoconocephalus ensiger): 7-6-12
Round-tipped Conehead (Neoconocephalus retusus): 10-1-12
Oblong-winged Katydid (Amblychorypha oblongifolia) 7-15-12
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia curvicauda): 7-6-12
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia furcata) 8-7-12
Least Shieldback (Atlanticus monticola): 7-6-12
Roesel’s Katydid (Metrioptera roeselii): 5-14-12 (nymphs – many), adult female photographed
6-22
Drumming Katydid (Meconema thalassinum) 7-23-12
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Crickets
Spring Field Cricket (Gryllus veletis): 5-14-12
Fall Field Cricket (Gryllus pennsylvanicus) 7-6-12. Many more by 7-15-12
Carolina Ground Cricket (Eunemobius carolinus): 7-6-12
Allard’s Ground Cricket (Allonemobius allardi): 7-6-12
Striped Ground Cricket (Allonemobius fasciatus): 7-6-12
Cuban Ground Cricket (Neonemobius cubensis): 8-7-12
Pine Tree Cricket (Oecanthus pini): 7-6-12
Snowy Tree Cricket (Oecanthus fultoni): 7-10-12
Four-spotted Tree Cricket (Oecanthus quadripunctatus): 7-15-12
(I could not confirm Davis’ Tree Cricket this year, but I believe they were present in the wooded
areas.)
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket (Oecanthus niveus): 8-7-12
Black-horned Tree Cricket (Oecanthus nigricornis): 8-23-12 (probably earlier, but not confirmed
until this date.)
Two-spotted Tree Cricket (Neoxabea bipunctata): 7-10-12
Say’s Trig (Anaxipha exigua): 8-1-12
Handsome Trig (Phyllopalpus pulchellus): 8-23-12
(Mystery ground cricket: 7-6-12)
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SUMMARY: FROHRING MEADOWS AND ORCHARD HILLS DOCUMENTATION
IN 2008 AND 2012
This survey did not begin with a complete absence of data. As noted at the beginning of the
report, I did a brief volunteer survey of both parks in 2008. This gave me a useful starting point
for this year’s far more comprehensive survey. However, it is important to note that the
differences between these two surveys resulted in different types of documentation being
produced.
Survey duration
2008: late July to early September.
This time period is good for a general overview because it is when the greatest number of
cricket and katydid species are singing.
2012: late May through early October
The early start time enabled documentation of the presence - or absence – of the earliest
species including Spring Field Crickets, Roesel’s katydids, Gladiator Meadow Katydids, and
Broad-winged Bush Katydids. One – and possibly two –cricket species I do not know were also
recorded.
Frohring Meadows areas surveyed
2008: only the lower meadows M1, M2, M3, Wetlands 1 and 2 (Wetland 3 was not yet created),
and the power line corridor. Species documentation was divided simply into meadow/wetland
and power line corridor.
2012: the entire park. Frohring was divided into six meadow areas, three wetlands, the woods,
the power line corridor, and the prairie garden.
Orchard Hills areas surveyed:
2008: the fairways, the borrow pit area, and the woodland passage/stream crossing between
them. Species lists indicated if insects were found in the park (former golf course) or the
borrow pit area.
2012: Orchard Hills survey areas included two wetlands, four stream restoration areas, and five
sectional divisions of the McIntosh Trail. The borrow pit was neither accessible nor relevant to
the current restoration work.
At both parks in 2012, species were tracked through the season in each area.
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Restoration documentation: Frohring Meadows
2008: Wetland 2 had recently been created and the meadows seeded with prairie plants
2012: Wetland 3 was created in 2009. Meadows had gone through uneven development since
2007. Parts of the meadows had been disked/herbicided; it appeared that in some places this
was done twice during the summer/fall. Some disked areas were planted with buckwheat, and
later tilled. Burning was planned but did not occur in 2012. Disked areas were being replanted
in late fall.
Restoration documentation: Orchard Hills
2008: the park was no longer being maintained as a golf course and would soon open to the
public.
2012: the front and back ponds had been drained. Two wetlands had been created in the front
and extensive wildflower plantings surround them. A stream that was covered over for
fairways had recently been restored. This huge undertaking also involved large, new areas of
native plantings, and reforestation was already beginning on some of the fairways. It is an
enormous transformation, and the restored areas are only in their second year.
The information I obtained through this survey is useful for analyzing current populations,
recent changes, and possible changes in the future.
For each park, I examined land management and its effects on crickets and katydids; this will
comprise the rest of the report. When analyzing my findings, two considerations are common
to both parks: the impact of this year’s weather on the species data and the northward
movement of crickets and katydids in our area.
WEATHER: WHAT ACTUALLY WAS OBSERVED IN THE WETLANDS?
Both Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills have recently-created wetland that should prove to
be very attractive to crickets and especially katydids. I expect to see many more Coneheads
and Bush Katydids at the wetland edges. Meadow katydids such as Short-winged and Slender
Meadow Katydids should become increasingly common. This would be the preferred habitat
for Gladiator Meadow Katydids in the early summer and Black-legged Meadow Katydids in the
late summer and autumn. If Long-tailed Meadow Katydids are in the area, they, too, should
find this habitat to be excellent.
To what extent has this begun to occur? The answer is not clear because of the drought. Were
wetland species compromised because there was no water surrounding them and because
their necessary vegetation was so stressed – or even dead? Had rainfall and temperature been
65
closer to average, would I have found more katydids? Have they simply not yet begun to
populate the wetlands in significant numbers?
Even outside of the new wetland and restoration areas, the numbers and distribution of
Gladiator Meadow Katydids and Broad-winged Bush Katydid were lower than expected. These
species are in the southern part of their range here in Ohio, and they matured as the impacts of
drought and heat intensified. Would their numbers have been closer to expected had the
weather been more moderate? Frohring in particular has plenty of good habitat for them. It
might take two or three years to get a better sense of the effects of weather and habitat. Low
numbers this year could result in relatively low numbers again next year as well.
MOVING NORTH: HABITAT RESTORATION, OR CLIMATE CHANGE AND HUMAN
TRANSPORTATION?
Some of the changes in the species lists at both parks are a result of northward range expansion
– and possibly retreat as well. I have been able to document changes just within the past five
years.
Coneheads
The most notable example of northward range expansion is the Round-tipped Conehead, which
I have now found as far north as Orchard Hills. I did not hear this southern Ohio species until
2010, but since then there have been more each year. They are present in areas not
undergoing any habitat restoration as well as at Orchard Hills and Frohring Meadows. This
would suggest that their appearance is not a result of restoration but instead is triggered by a
warming climate. Other somewhat more southern conehead species such as the Slightlymusical Conehead have appeared in Geauga County. The Nebraska Conehead from a little
south and west of Geauga has also made appearances here this year. I think that their numbers
will continue to increase in our area and that habitat protection and restoration will provide a
suitable environment for these conehead immigrants as they arrive.
Jumping Bush Crickets
As noted earlier, these crickets have been steadily expanding northward and in some areas
have almost reached Lake Erie. Considering their numbers just to the south of Frohring, their
appearance was to be expected. Additionally, they can move with nursery shrubs and saplings
planted in residential areas. I even heard some singing in potted saplings for sale in the Home
Depot parking lot on Wilson Mills at I-271. Their appearance seems to be a result of a warmer
climate and human landscaping; it is not connected to habitat restoration. They are already at
North Chagrin Reservation and the Holden Arboretum, and I expect that they will arrive at
Orchard Hills within the next couple of years. They are an Ohio species and I do not think they
will impact other native species here.
66
Handsome Trigs
The northward progression of these little crickets has brought them up to Lake Erie as well and
they seem to be getting established in the Snow Belt. Considering that they oviposit in shrubs
and saplings, these crickets could also be moved in nursery plantings.
FROHRING MEADOWS: CRICKETS, KATYDIDS, WETLANDS, AND MEADOW MANAGEMENT
The Frohring Meadows species list indicates 19 katydid species and 15 cricket species present at
the park between late May and early October. The 2008 species lists included 11 katydid
species and 9 cricket species. Some of these katydids and crickets may have been present in
areas not surveyed in 2008, but others definitely were not.
The wetlands that were created in 2007 and 2009 do have katydids and crickets, but I was
surprised that a greater increase in species and numbers was not yet apparent. In 2008 I wrote:
“Crickets and katydids were beginning to populate the new habitats of Frohring
Meadows. While the numbers were still low, Black-legged Meadow Katydids were
beginning to move into the wetland. Some Scudderia could be found in the dense areas
of goldenrod between the wetland and the shrubs and trees separating the wetland area
from the power line corridor (this area would be labeled W1in 2012). Ground crickets –
Carolina, Striped, and Allard’s – were present and Black-horned Tree Crickets sang in the
meadow areas outside the wetland.” (I did not identify the Cuban Ground Cricket until
the following year, and I am sure they were present as well.)
My description of the wetland areas has changed somewhat, but not as much as I would have
expected. There is now a second new wetland, but still only occasional Black-legged Meadow
Katydids. As noted previously, these numbers could have been partially limited by the drought.
There were many Gladiator Meadow Katydids in W1 and much smaller numbers in the new
wetlands. This species can also be found in meadows – especially ones that are not too dry.
Black-legged Meadow Katydids will almost always be near some kind of water or damp area.
Sword-bearing Coneheads did indeed circle the wetlands, but they had already done so in 2008.
I suspect that their earlier-than usual disappearance this year was a result of the weather.
I certainly would have expected more Scudderia bush katydids around the wetlands but did not
find them until the Texas Bush Katydids matured later in the summer. I thought Curve-tailed
Bush Katydids should have been much more common. They are our most frequentlyencountered Scudderia and have a long season spanning mid/late July through September.
They are also a katydid I often find in and around wetland areas.
67
There are many more Slender Meadow Katydids in these areas now, and I found them in good
numbers from the Dragonfly Trail all the way to areas that should have had standing water in
less dry years. I did not find many short-winged Meadow Katydids there, but they were
scattered around the meadow areas.
Ground crickets were even more numerous than in 2008, and there were large numbers of
Striped Ground Crickets in the wetlands. Black-horned Tree Crickets were now in the burr
marigolds and smartweed as well as goldenrod, and Four-spotted Tree Crickets were in the
Queen Anne’s lace and asters. Tree crickets are doing well in these areas.
There seem to be more crickets and katydids in the lower meadows M1, M2, and M3 now.
(2012 was my first survey of M4, M5, and M6, so data for these areas cannot be compared to
2008.) Both Four-spotted and Black-horned Tree Crickets were found in numbers I would
expect in predominantly aster/goldenrod meadows. Additionally, I often found tree cricket
nymphs and adults feeding on various sunflowers and other wildflowers at night. In early
summer, Gladiator Meadow Katydids could be found in the meadows – especially the lower
meadow areas. My previous report suggests that this was not the case in 2008, so it would
appear that they are expanding their areas at Frohring.
Sword-bearing Coneheads were singing in all meadow areas during July and August. Their
numbers declined in September, but they were replaced throughout the meadows by Roundtipped Coneheads. This species is a newcomer to Frohring and was not present in 2008.
Broad-winged Bush Katydids were not encountered as often as I would have expected and their
numbers dropped off rather early. Although they are recorded on the spreadsheet for a
number of survey sections, their numbers in each area were low –often just one singing male in
each area. Curve-tailed Bush Katydids were not common and should have been seen and heard
much more frequently. I could see no reason why they would not be more prevalent other
than this summer’s drought.
However, I have never heard and seen so many Texas Bush Katydids! The weather had
moderated somewhat by the time they matured. They are a species that can be found south
into Texas and Florida, so perhaps they are more tolerant of heat. Broad-winged Bush
Katydids, on the other hand, are a more northern species that is not even present in Kentucky.
Texas Bush Katydids were as common in September as Curve-tailed Bush Katydids typically
have been in other parks and preserves during previous years.
Wetland 1 may be the source of many of the crickets and katydids I found in and around the
new wetlands and surrounding meadows areas. W1 was more accessible this year because it
was drier, and the firebreak through parts of the area made exploration more possible.
Impressive numbers of Gladiator Meadow Katydids could be heard there in late June, and there
68
were Black-legged Meadow Katydids later in the season. Tree crickets and both species of Trigs
were present in the shrubs. Broad-winged, Fork-tailed, Curve-tailed, and Texas Bush Katydids
were all there at various times in the Ensifera season. I also wonder if Long-tailed Meadow
Katydids are present in any of the wettest parts of W1; if so, this could be why a female nymph
was observed in W2 this year.
The power line corridor may be the source for quite a few crickets and katydids that appear in
other areas of the park. The species diversity and numbers of individuals were quite good in
2008 and also in 2012. The power line corridor includes hedge rows, damp areas of sedges and
bulrushes, grapevine/blackberry tangles, dry areas, and goldenrod. It borders on both Meadow
area 3 and the lower woods. Most of the katydids and crickets I recorded at Frohring could be
found there, and they could easily spread into both woodland and meadow habitat as
appropriate to their species.
Disking took place during the summer, and buckwheat was planted in some areas in late
summer. When meadow areas were cleared, all crickets and katydids were eliminated from
those areas. In time ground crickets and sometimes Fall Field Crickets gradually began to
return when plants of any sort began to appear. If any clumps of vegetation remained after
disking, the ground crickets eventually found them. Tree crickets only remained if there were
any asters or goldenrod at the edges. Ground crickets would stay in the grass next to the trail.
In general, however, if the habitat was eliminated, the katydids were immediately gone and the
ground crickets gradually returned as they were able to do so.
Where buckwheat was planted in September, ground crickets – including Cuban Ground
Crickets - quickly moved in. When the grass and buckwheat grew tall enough at the lower end
of M6, a single Sword-bearing Conehead followed by a single Round-tipped Conehead took up
residence until their newfound vegetation was eliminated for future prairie planting. The
buckwheat planting supported no meadow katydids, tree crickets, or Texas Bush Katydids - only
those two individual Coneheads.
I discovered what were almost certainly Texas Bush Katydid eggs in a Canadian wild rye leaf
near the trail in M6. Texas Bush Katydids – male and female – had been in that same area
previously. I noticed that the rye leaves were drying up and falling to the ground. Had that area
subsequently been disked – or if it were burned in the spring – it seems unlikely that those eggs
would survive. No meadow burning has yet taken place at Frohring, so there is no comparison
of burned/unburned areas at this time.
69
Texas Bush Katydids oviposit between layers of a leaf, and I found these eggs in a rye leaf in the
exact area where I had recently observed a male and a female Texas Bush Katydid. 9-16-12.
70
FROHRING MEADOWS: CONCLUSIONS
At Frohring Meadows, good habitats now exist for katydids, crickets, and certainly for other
insects as well. The numbers of grasshoppers are also impressive, and birds are happy to eat all
of these Orthopterans. The created wetlands should attract more katydids and crickets over
time, and additional species could move in from W1. My only surprise was that there were not
more of them already. I hope to one day find an additional conehead species or two in the new
wetlands, and perhaps the Long-tailed Meadow Katydids and many more Black-legged Meadow
Katydids will be able to establish themselves when there is more normal rainfall.
The meadows have more katydids and crickets than in 2008. They are using the asters,
goldenrod, and Queen Anne’s lace as well as the prairie and meadow plants that have begun to
establish themselves. The sunflowers are a cricket favorite, and the Narrow-winged Tree
Crickets definitely like the penstemon. Many crickets and katydids eat grass and sedge seeds in
the meadow, both as nymphs and as adults. I have seen quite a few meadow katydids and
Sword-bearing Coneheads ascend the prairie grasses at the F.A. Seiberling Nature Realm in the
Akron area, and I am sure the Frohring katydids will do the same as those plants become
available to them.
The necessary disking and replanting temporarily eliminates crickets and katydids, but these
procedures are only being done in small areas with plenty of undisturbed meadow habitat
nearby. Additionally, some of the larger species such as bush katydids and coneheads can fly
into nearby areas when disking occurs. I anticipate that insects from the undisturbed areas will
move into the replanted areas as those plants grow.
Burning is a greater challenge for most of the katydids and the meadow-dwelling tree crickets
because their eggs are destroyed, thus eliminating next year’s insects from the burned areas. I
saw at Burton Wetlands that tree crickets could subsequently move in from adjoining areas that
were not burned, but the katydid numbers did not rebound within the season. At Frohring,
there are not as many bush katydids as at Burton Wetlands. Although the areas to be burned
are smaller than those at Burton Wetlands, I nonetheless wonder how quickly katydid species
would be able to repopulate burned areas at Frohring.
ORCHARD HILLS: CRICKETS, KATYDIDS, WETLANDS, AND STREAM RESTORATION
The Orchard Hills species list for 2012 documents 15 katydid species and 14 cricket species
compared with 11 katydid species and 11 cricket species in 2008. The 2008 survey also
included the borrow pit area, which is where the Straight-lanced Meadow Katydids were found
in the dry, gravelly areas with less vegetation density. They were not found in the former golf
course. There were also many Fall Field Crickets in the borrow pit at that time, but only a few
individuals in the sand trap area at the north end of the former golf course.
71
In the 2008 report, I wrote:
The fairways could greatly benefit from increased habitat diversity. Tree crickets and
Trigs need sunny, shrubby areas, tangles of blackberries, and goldenrod/aster meadow
areas. A splendid addition would be more vegetation around the ponds. This would
support Black-legged Meadow Katydids and numerous other katydids, crickets, and
Coneheads. Also, in many areas the golf course grass extends to the edge of the
windbreak tree lines and the edge of the woods. There is no shrubby border and the
meadow edge that transitions between them. Creating that kind of hedgerow border
would result in much greater numbers of insects and would be very beneficial for birds.
I could not even begin to imagine the extent of the restoration possible with the Clean Ohio
Conservation Program funds!
The wetlands and restoration are still very new. They can – and undoubtedly will – support a
diverse list of katydid species with healthy numbers. The insects need to find their way to these
splendid, new habitats. There were not many katydids at Orchard Hills in 2008. Although there
were 11 species, only the Common True Katydids were numerous. Golf course management
certainly would have limited katydids. Ground crickets survive quite a bit of habitat disruption,
but most tree crickets and katydids had little appropriate vegetation at that time. These insects
generally were not going to be able move in from more diverse habitats elsewhere on the
property, as would be possible from Frohring Meadows’ original wetland and the power line
corridor.
Those species that live in the trees seemed to be doing well in 2008, and that continues to be
true now. There are Common True Katydids anywhere there are taller trees. Two-spotted Tree
Crickets are in the trees as well, and I believe (though could not confirm) that Davis’s Tree
Crickets share their habitat. (They were present in 2008.) Greater Anglewings and Oblongwinged Katydids sang in the trees, and the white pines support a strong population of Pine Tree
Crickets. Narrow-winged Tree Crickets, which live both in trees and lower vegetation, were
found in some of the smaller trees.
Slender Meadow Katydids lived in a grassy area on the lower side of the central pond located
behind Patterson’s Fruit Farm in 2008. I wondered if I would still find them, as the pond was
removed and the entire area scraped bare and subsequently replanted. I was surprised and
pleased to see that they were in the same vicinity and had also expanded well out into other
grassy areas of the park. Short-winged Meadow Katydids are not yet numerous, but there were
more of them in 2012 than in 2008.
Roesel’s Katydids – our non-native shieldback katydids – were doing well in the grassy areas
early in the season. Their season ends as our native insects mature. Although I was concerned
72
about the huge number of nymphs I found at Orchard Hills a few years ago, the population
seems to be in balance now. These katydids typically have short wings, but there are also longwinged individuals who can fly and who expand the range of the species. I have found longwinged individuals at various Geauga locations.
There are still very few Black-legged Meadow Katydids, and I only found a single Gladiator
Meadow Katydid. I had not found any in 2008 and thought my search was simply begun too
late. Considering the single individual in the W2, perhaps they really were not present in 2008.
I do not know how long it will take for Gladiator Meadow Katydids to become established, but
the newly-created habitats should be excellent for them. Black-legged Meadow Katydids had
been at the fishing pond in 2008 – and still are in 2012 – and were also at the back pond that
has been replaced with a stream restoration area. Although I only heard one or two at each
stream restoration area, they are indeed present. I also found a female at R3.
The Scudderia bush katydids were virtually absent from the park, and this surprised and
concerned me. Perhaps it is just too soon to expect them, as there were very few in 2008 as
well. The habitat exists for them now, and any expansion of shrubby areas and edge habitat
will further support these insects.
There still are not as many Four-spotted Tree Crickets and especially Black-horned Tree Crickets
as I would have expected. Again, I believe this will change as the new habitat areas become
more established. The large areas of wildflowers leading to Wetland 2 and restoration areas 1
and 3 should support quite a few in time. There are a small number of Say’s Trigs in the stream
restoration areas’ small willows, and they, too should become more numerous. They may also
expand into other wetland and stream edge planting. Handsome Trigs are currently found in
one small location; a blackberry tangle at the edge of the former fairway trail on the east side of
the park near Mc1. In 2008, I found just a few at the back edge of the property near what is
now R1, and perhaps they will appear in the shrubs there again in the future.
Ground and field crickets are doing splendidly; they were plentiful in every habitat. Fall Field
Crickets have spread dramatically since 2008. Instead of just a few individuals by the far north
sand trap, they are now singing in a range of habitats around the entire park. Spring Field
Crickets were also present this year – only a few and only in a couple of areas, but that is how
the Fall Field Crickets started just four years ago. I had not yet identified Cuban Ground Crickets
in 2008, but I strongly suspect them to have been there in the sound texture. In 2012, they
could be heard singing throughout the park, including the wetland and restoration areas.
73
ORCHARD HILLS: CONCLUSIONS
This year’s survey at Orchard Hills documents a new starting point, as the changes of the past
few years have been profound. The 2008 Frohring survey was similar to the Orchard Hills 2012
survey. The park just opened to the public two years ago, and new habitats have only recently
been - and are still being – created. The wetland and stream restoration areas are quickly
becoming inviting habitats, and not all species will become established at the same time.
Although Orchard Hills is still primarily cricket habitat now, I expect to see and hear many more
katydids in the near future. Future surveys would certainly document more individuals of the
current species and new species as well. Excellent habitat has been created, and the invitation
now awaits acceptance.
Habitat has been created at Orchard Hills for Black-legged Meadow Katydids and other crickets,
katydids, and grasshoppers. I am sure there will be many more of them soon. 8-23-12.
74
RESOURCES CONSULTED
Bland, Robert G. 2003. The Orthoptera of Michigan – Biology, Keys, and Descriptions of
Grasshoppers, Katydids, and Crickets. Michigan State University Extension, East Lansing,
Michigan. 220 pages.
Carpina, John L., Ralph D. Scott, and Thomas Walker, 2004. Grasshoppers, Katydids, and
Crickets of the United States. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York. 249 pages.
Dethier, Vincent G. 1992. Crickets and Katydids, Concerts and Solos, Harvard University Press,
Cambridge, Massachusetts. 142 pages.
Elliott, Lang and Wil Hershberger, 2006. The Songs of Insects, Houghton Mifflin Company,
Boston and New York. 226 pages.
Gwynne, Darryl T. 2001 Katydids and Bush-crickets: Reproductive Behavior and Evolution of the
Tettigoniidae. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York. 317 pages.
Himmelman, John, 2008. Guide to Night-singing Insects of the Northeast, Stackpole Books,
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. 151 pages.
Web resources:
Walker, Thomas J. and Thomas E. Moore. Singing Insects of North America
http://www.entnemdept.ufl.edu/walker/buzz/
Black-legged Meadow Katydid male, Frohring Meadows, 9-21-12.
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ADDITIONAL PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD SEASON
Short-winged Meadow Katydids at Orchard Hills: female, 9-17-12 and male, 9-28-12.
76
Black-legged Meadow Katydid ascends her Culver’s Root throne in the prairie garden on
7-22-12, and a male balances on my hand on 9-21-12 at Frohring Meadows.
Black-legged Meadow Katydid male at Orchard Hills on 8-23-12.
77
Gladiator Meadow Katydid on timothy, then grooming his antenna at Frohring on 6-26-12.
78
A Scudderia bush katydid’s final molt - and his exuvia. Frohring prairie garden, 7-22-12.
A recently-mated Curve-tailed Bush Katydid female at one of the Frohring Meadows wetlands
on 8-2-12, and a closer view of the spermatophore.
79
A tough, old Texas Bush Katydid in the lower meadows at Frohring on 9-29-12.
80
Texas Bush Katydid decides where to dine next. Frohring Meadows, 9-29-12.
These katydids like asters, rushes, smartweed…but they would not tolerate being placed on goldenrod!
81
Four-spotted Tree cricket female with fabulous antennae, Frohring, 7-31-12.
Four-spotted Tree Crickets have this distinctive four-spot pattern at the base of each antenna, 7-31-12.
82
Four-spotted Tree Cricket appears to have just completed its final molt at Frohring on 8-31-12.
Four-spotted Tree Crickets mating at Frohring on 7-17-12.
83
This Black-horned Tree Cricket’s wings are down between songs; then he raises them to sing.
Next: looking straight down as he sings. Orchard Hills, 9-12-12.
84
More views of the Orchard Hills Pine Tree Cricket that was singing in a honeysyckle leaf
just beneath a white pine branch. Perhaps the acoustics were better there. 9-12-12.
85
Grasshoppers
Both Frohring Meadows and Orchard Hills had an abundance of grasshoppers. Most were in the
genus Melanoplus. These two are Differential Grasshoppers: Melanoplus differentialis.
86
More Orchard Hills Differential Grasshoppers from 8-28 and 9-2-12.
87
Blue color form of the Red-legged Grasshopper: Melanoplus femurrubrum. Orchard Hills 8-2-12.
This is probably the more common form of the Red-legged Grasshopper. Orchard Hills, 8-28-12.
88
Two-striped Grasshopper, Melanoplus bivittatus. Orchard Hills, 9-2-12.
Short-winged Green Grasshoppers, Dichromorpha viridis. Orchard Hills, 8-28-12.
89
Grasshoppers can inhabit much drier areas than most of our katydids, but there are plenty that
also live in the same habitats as katydids. These Melanoplus grasshoppers are from Frohring in
August and September, and all appear to be in the genus Melanoplus.
90
Differential Grasshopper (above) and a very red-nosed Melanoplus grasshopper (below).
Both photos were taken at Frohring on 9-13 and 9-16-12.
91
FROHRING MEADOWS AND ORCHARD HILLS 2012 AUDIO CD TRACK LIST
1. Introduction
2. Spring Field cricket
3. Roesel’s Katydid
4. Gladiator Meadow Katydid
5. Frohring Meadows mystery cricket 6-20-12
6. Carolina Ground Cricket
7. Least Shieldback
8. Sword-bearing Conehead
9. Striped Ground Cricket
10. Allard’s Ground Cricket
11. Allard’s and Striped Ground Cricket interactions
12. Snowy Tree Cricket
13. Orchard Hills mystery cricket 7-6-12
14. Pine Tree Cricket
15. Fall Field Cricket
16. Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
17. Slender meadow Katydid
18. Two-spotted Tree Cricket
19. Oblong-winged Katydid
20. Four-spotted Tree Cricket
21. Say’s Trig
22. Northern Bush Katydid
23. Common True Katydid
24. Mystery Meadow Katydid in the trees at Frohring 7-22-12
92
25. Cuban Ground Cricket
26. Black-horned Tree Cricket
27. Black-horned and Four-spotted Tree Cricket comparison
28. Narrow-winged Tree Cricket
29. Handsome Trig
30. Black-legged meadow Katydid
31. Nebraska Conehead
32. Greater Anglewing
33. Texas Bush Katydid
34. Round-tipped Conehead
35. Jumping Bush Cricket
36. Frohring meadows medley
37. Orchard Hills medley
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket singing in a maple leaf at Orchard Hills on 8-26-12.
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SPREADSHEETS FOR THE FROHRING MEADOWS AND ORCHARD HILLS SURVEY SEASON
If you are reading this report online or from a CD,
you will find these survey spreadsheets in a separate file.
FROHRING MEADOWS
Katydids
Crickets
ORCHARD HILLS
Katydids
Crickets
Black-horned Tree Cricket singing at Orchard Hills on 9-12-12.
94
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids 2012
Date, survey time
5-31 after deer excl
6-7 after deer excl
6-14 10:30-2:45
6-19 10:45-2:00
6-20 8:30-10PM
Temperatures
70 degrees
low 70s
10:45 - 2:00
85 in evening
Weather conditions
sun, brzy
mostly sunny
hot, humid,sun
clear, hot
M1 behind mound
W1 many singing! M1/2
MK nymphs wetlands MK nymphs wetland
MK nymphs
many MK nymphs W2
M1 ,M3,PLC
PLC,PLCW, M1,4,5
Common Names
Latin Names
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
Conocephalus brevipennis
Slender Meadow Katydid
Conocephalus fasciatus
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Conocephalus attenuatus
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Orchelimum nigripes
Common Meadow Katydid
Orchelimum vulgare
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
Orchelimum gladiator
Sword-bearing Conehead
Neoconocephalus ensiger
Round-tipped Conehead
Neoconocephalus retusus
Nebraska Conehead
Neoconocephalus nebracensis
Common True Katydid
Pterophylla camellifolia
Oblong-winged Katydid
Amblycorypha oblongifolia
Greater Anglewing
Microcentrum rhombifolium
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
Scudderia curvicauda
Texas Bush Katydid
Scudderia texensis
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
Scudderia furcata
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
Scudderia pistillata
Northern Bush Katydid
Scudderia septemtrianalis
Roesel's Katydid
Metrioptera roeselii
Least Shieldback
Atlanticus monticola
nymphs
M3. PLC
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids p.2
Date, survey time
6/26 11:30AM-3:30PM 6/28 8:30 PM-11:10PM 7/5 8:30 - 11:50 PM
7/9 9:00 - 11:00 PM
7/12 9:00P-12:30A
Temperatures
75-85
92 -83
84 - 75 but HUMID
74 - 65
75-71 humid
Weather conditions
sunny, windy
partly cloudy
mostly clear, calm,
calm, clear
cloudy, recent rain
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
Slender Meadow Katydid
W3 by PL path
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Common Meadow Katydid
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
M1,M2,M5,W3,PLC
M1,2,3, W1,2,3,PLC
M1,2,3,5,W1,2,3,PLC
M1, W3, PLC,LW
MK nymphs M1,2
Sword-bearing Conehead
M2, M3, PLC
M4,5,6,
M1,2,3,4,W1,3,PLC
Round-tipped Conehead
Nebraska Conehead
Common True Katydid
Oblong-winged Katydid
PLC, edge of LW
Greater Anglewing
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
M4, W1, PLC, LW
Texas Bush Katydid
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
PLC
PLC,M3,M4
M3
none heard
M3.M4,W1,PLC
M4,6
M4, W1, PLC, LW
Northern Bush Katydid
Roesel's Katydid
Least Shieldback
M2
M3/PLC border
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids p.3
Date, survey time
7/16 9:30P-1:30A
7/17 9:45-11:15 and
7/22 6:45-9:00P, then
7/31 7-9P,9:25P-1:50A
8/2 8:05PM-12:15AM
Temperatures
75-73 humid
12:00-1:30.87-79
9:50P-2:30AM 89-72
85-65
82-68
Weather conditions
clear
Pcldy, tstorm in area
var. clouds, brzy
PC, breezy in meadows partly cloudy
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
nymph M1
nymph M5
M5
LW
W3, M1
M6, poss M5
M1, W2, W3
Slender Meadow Katydid
M5
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
W2
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Prairie Garden
Common Meadow Katydid
M4 edge, LW, W2
wondering abt PLC
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
M2, W3 PLC
W1
Sword-bearing Conehead
M1,2,3,4,PLC,LWopening M5,W1,2,3
W1, W3, PLC
M1,2,3,4,W1,PLC,UW,LW M1,2,3,PLC,LW
M2,3,4,PLC,LW,W2,W3
Round-tipped Conehead
Nebraska Conehead
PLC
Common True Katydid
UW, LW, PLC
heard in woods
M3,UW,LW
M3,PLC,LW
LW, PLC
Oblong-winged Katydid
M3, UW, LW, PLC
W1
PLC,UW,LW,M3
M3,PLC,LW
LW,PLC
M3, PLC, UW
W1
PG, PLC,M4
Greater Anglewing
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
M2.M3,PLC
Texas Bush Katydid
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
PLC. W2
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
M2,3,PLC
W1
Northern Bush Katydid
Upper wood edge
UW,PLC
Roesel's Katydid
Least Shieldback
PLC,M2
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids p.4
Date, survey time
8/8 5-7:10, 8:50-12:50
8/15 9:15-11:30
8/22 4:45 - 7:30
8/24 8:40 - 11:40
8/30 5:30 - 7:40
8/31 8:25PM-1:40AM
Temperatures
85-84, then 76-66
70-62 fast drop
75 steady
76-67
84 - 68
82-73
Weather conditions
partly cloudy
partly cloudy
partly cldy
clear
sunny
hazy, some high clouds
W2,3,
W2,3,
W3
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
W1,3,M1,2,3,
W3,M2, M5
Slender Meadow Katydid
W1,2,3,M1.
W2,3,M2,M5
M3
W3
W3
W2,3,
W3
W1,3,M1,2,3,5,PLC
W2,3,M2,3,5
W1,3,M1,2,3,4,PLC
M3,4,6,PLC
M3,M6
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Common Meadow Katydid
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
Sword-bearing Conehead
Round-tipped Conehead
M2,3,4,6,W3
Nebraska Conehead
poss, PLC beyond GPD
Common True Katydid
PLC
M4,LW
in trees-woods, edges
Oblong-winged Katydid
W1,PLC
M4, LW
PLC
Greater Anglewing
W1,M5,PLC
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
M2,3,PLC
M2,5
Texas Bush Katydid
W3,M5
W1,M2,3
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
W1,PLC
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
Northern Bush Katydid
Roesel's Katydid
Least Shieldback
W1, LW, PLC
W1
M1
W1, W3
PLC
M5,M6,PLC
PLC
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids p.5
Date, survey time
9/1 9:30 - 11:30PM 9/5 6:00 - 10:15
9/11 3:00 - 7:15
9/13 3:15-7:05, 8:10-10:45 9/16 2:00 - 5:00
9/21 3:15 - 7:15
Temperatures
74 degrees steady
79 - 72
75-65
84-67
71 - 68
69-62
Weather conditions
mostly cldy-shwrs
mostly cloudy
sunny
mostly cloudy
sunny, breezy
sun, brzy,cloudy,rain
Short-winged Meadow Katydid M4
Slender Meadow Katydid
M6
M2
W2, M5 firebreak,M6
W1
W3
W3, M3
W2,W3,M6
W2, W3
W2,3
W3
W3, M3
W2
W1, W3
W2
W1
M4
W1, W3
W2,3,
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Common Meadow Katydid
possibly one in M6
M5 firebreak
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
Sword-bearing Conehead
M4, M6
W3, M4, M6
Round-tipped Conehead
M4, M6
M4, M6
M5,M6
M3
W3, M4,5,6
Nebraska Conehead
Common True Katydid
M5 firebreak
Oblong-winged Katydid
Greater Anglewing
M4
M5 firebreak
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
Texas Bush Katydid
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
Northern Bush Katydid
Roesel's Katydid
Least Shieldback
M5 firebreak
M4, M6
M4, M6
W3, M3
M3
W2, M4,M6
Frohring Meadows Katydids 2012
Frohring Katydids p. 6
Date, survey time
9/29 3:00 - 7:00
10/4 2:25 - 6:15
Temperatures
63 - 54
71 - 64
Weather conditions
mostly cloudy, brzy
cloudy-sunny windy
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
M1, M2
M5
Slender Meadow Katydid
M1, M2, W3
W2, M6
PLC
M5. M6
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Common Meadow Katydid
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
Sword-bearing Conehead
Round-tipped Conehead
Nebraska Conehead
Common True Katydid
Oblong-winged Katydid
Greater Anglewing
PLC
Curve-tailed Bush Katydid
Texas Bush Katydid
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
Northern Bush Katydid
Roesel's Katydid
Least Shieldback
M1. M2
M6
Orchard Hills Crickets 2012
Orchard Hills Crickets 2012
Date, survey time
5/14prelim 4:30-7:30 6/22/ 3:30-7:30
6-28 4:00-7:00
7/6 9PM - 12AM
7/10 8:50-10:50
Temperatures
sunny
80 degrees
82 - 80
80 - 73
74-65
Weather conditions
74 - 70
sunny
sunny, breezy
clear, humid
clear, calm
PWT, R1
none
Mc4, R4
Common Name
Latin name
Spring Field Cricket
Gryllus veletis
Fall Field Cricket
Gryllus pennsylvanicus
Mc4
Carolina Ground Cricket
Eunemobius carolinus
W1,2,Mc1,2,3,R4,WP all sections
Allards Ground Cricket
Allonemobius allardi
Mc4
R4
Striped Ground Cricket
Allonemobius fasciatus
W1,2,Mc1,R3,4,WP
PL,W2,Mc1,2,4,R1,3
Cuban Ground Cricket
Neonemobius cubensis
Mc3
not heard tonight
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket
Oecanthus niveus
Snowy Tree Cricket
Oecanthus fultoni
Black-horned Tree Cricket
Oecanthus nigrigornis
Pine Tree Cricket
Oecanthus pini
Four-spotted Tree Cricket
Oecanthus quadripunctatus
Davis's Tree Cricket
Oecanthus exclamationis
Two-spotted Tree Cricket
Neoxabea bipunctata
Says Trig
Anaxipha exigua
Handsome Trig
Phyllopalpus pulchellus
R4
All areas with pines
All areas with pines
poss. Mc4 by ravine
Orchard Hills Crickets 2012
Orchard Hills Crickets p.2
Date, survey time
7/15 9:15-11:30P
7/23 10:15PM - 2:00 AM
8/1 5:25 - 8:00PM 8/7 8:25 - 1:35
8/14 9:15 - 11:15
Temperatures
79 - 75
85-83
82-76
77-66
68-63
Weather conditions
Pcldy, humid
Clear and hot
sunny
clear
partly cloudy, some fog
Fall Field Cricket
W2,Mc3,4, R1,3
W2,Mc1,2,3,4,R1,4,WPT
Mc1,R1,2,3
W1,Mc1,2,3,4.R2,3,4,WP W2, Mc1,2,3,4,R3, PW
Carolina Ground Cricket
PL.W2,Mc1.2.3.4.R1,3,4,WP PL,Mc1,2,3,4,R1,3,4,WPT W2,Mc1,R1,2,3
Allards Ground Cricket
Mc2,3,4,R3
PL,W1,2,Mc1,2,3,4,R1,3,4 PL,W2,Mc1,R1,2,3 W1,2,Mc1,2,3,4,R2,3
W2, Mc1,2,3,4,R3, PW
Striped Ground Cricket
PL,W2,Mc1,2,3,4,R3,4,WP
PL,W1,2,Mc1,2,3,4,R1,3,4 PL,W2,Mc1,R1,2,3 W1,2,Mc1,2,3,R2,4,WP
W2, Mc1,2,3,4,R3, PW
Common Name
Spring Field Cricket
W1,2,Mc1,2,3,4,R2,3,4,WPW2, Mc1,2,3,4,R3, PW
Cuban Ground Cricket
W2,Mc3
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket
Mc1,WP
Snowy Tree Cricket
Mc4, R3,R4
Black-horned Tree Cricket
PPL. Mc1
PL near Caves Rd.
not yet as far as I can tell
not yet that I can confirm
Pine Tree Cricket
All areas with pines
Mc1,2,4
Mc1,2,3,4,WP
Mc2,3,4, PW
Four-spotted Tree Cricket
PL
PL, W1.2, Mc1, R1,3,4
W2,Mc2,3,4,R2,3,WP
W2, Mc1,2,3,4,R3, PW
Davis's Tree Cricket
can't yet confirm
PPL. Mc3,4, WPT
Mc1
Two-spotted Tree Cricket
Mc2, 3, R3
Mc1,2,3,4,R3,4
Mc1,4,R3,WP
Says Trig
Handsome Trig
R1
Orchard Hills Crickets 2012
Orchard Hills Crickets p.3
Date, survey time
8/23 3:45 - 8:00
8/26 8:40-midnight
8/28 4:25 - 7:50
9/2 2:30 -7:00
9/12 3:20 - 6:00
Temperatures
83 - 72
75 - 72 almost steady
76 - 70
79 degrees
81 - 77
Weather conditions
Sunny
clear, breezy
sunny, breezy
var. cldy, humid
sunny, breezy
Common Name
Spring Field Cricket
Fall Field Cricket
W2,Mc2,3,4,R1,R3,path toR1 W2,Mc1,2,3,4,5,R3,4,FP
R1,3,4,fishing pond
W2, Mc1,3,4,R1,3,4
Mc1, Mc2
Carolina Ground Cricket
W2,Mc2,3,4,R1,R3,path toR1 W2,Mc1,2,3,4,5,R3,4,FP
R1,3,4,fishing pond
W1,2,Mc1,3,4,R1,3,4
W1, W2, R3,PW
Allards Ground Cricket
W2,Mc2,3,4,R1,R3,path toR1 W2,Mc1,2,3,4,5,R3,4,FP
R1,3,4,fishing pond
W1,2,Mc1,3,4,R1,3,4
W1,2,Mc1,2,R3,PW
Striped Ground Cricket
W2,Mc2,3,4,R1,R3,path toR1 W2,Mc1,2,3,4,5,R3,4,FP
R1,3,4,fishing pond
W1,2,Mc1,3,4,R1,3,4
W1,2,Mc1,2,R3,PW
Cuban Ground Cricket
W2,R1, Mc3,4
R1,3,4
W2,Mc1,2,3,4,R3,FP
Mc1,2,PW
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket
Mc1,2,5,R3,FP
Snowy Tree Cricket
Far north edge of Mc1
Black-horned Tree Cricket W2
W2
Pine Tree Cricket
Mc1,2,4,5,FP
Mc1
W1 up hill, Mc1,PW
W2,Mc1.2.3.5.R3,FP
W2, R4
W1,W2,Mc1,2
Mc2
Four-spotted Tree Cricket
R3
W2,R3
Davis's Tree Cricket
Two-spotted Tree Cricket
Mc1,2,FP
Says Trig
Handsome Trig
R1,R3
Path back to R1
Mc1
Mc1
Orchard Hills Crickets 2012
Orchard Hills Crickets p. 4
Date, survey time
9/18 2:00 - 4:30
9/28 3:30-6:30
10/1 3:30 - 6:30
10/3 4:15 - 7:45
Temperatures
73 degrees
62 - 56
63-59
70 - 62
Weather conditions
hazy sun, breezy
Mostly sunny,brzy
variable clouds
mostly cldy, brzy,
Fall Field Cricket
Mc1, R1
Across from R3 and R4 Mc3,4,
Mc4, R3
Carolina Ground Cricket
W2, Mc1, R1
W2, Mc1, R1,3,4
W2, Mc1,2,3,4
W1,2,R1,3,4,Mc1,4,5
Allards Ground Cricket
W2, Mc1, R1
W2, Mc1, R1,3,4
W2, Mc1,2,3,4
W1,2,R1,3,4,Mc1,4,5
Striped Ground Cricket
W2, Mc1, R1
W2, Mc1, R1,3,4
W2, Mc1,2,3,4
W1,2,R1,3,4,Mc1,4,5
W2, Mc1, R1,3,4
Mc2,3,4
W1,2,R1,3,4,Mc1,4,5
Mc1
Mc4, R4
Common Name
Spring Field Cricket
Cuban Ground Cricket
Narrow-winged Tree CricketMc1
Snowy Tree Cricket
Black-horned Tree Cricket W2, Mc1
Mc1
W2, Mc1
W2, Mc1,
Pine Tree Cricket
Mc1
Mc1
Mc1,2,3,4
Mc4, Mc5
Four-spotted Tree Cricket
W2, Mc1, R1
W2, Mc1, R1
W2, Mc1
W1,2,R1,R4, Mc5
Davis's Tree Cricket
Two-spotted Tree Cricket
Says Trig
Handsome Trig
Mc1