Last month while I was in western New York I found this critter.
It seemed to be a grasshopper, but with very long antennae.
I backed out to try to get all the antennae in the frame. Then it struck me that it felt like trying to take a photograph of katydid nymphs back home (previous post).
The insects we usually think of as grasshoppers don’t have such long antennae.
This little guy is actually a meadow katydid or longhorned grasshopper (genus Conocephalus).
Meadow katydids don’t sing the katy-did, katy-did of regular katydids. They tend to buzz or rattle, instead.
Here’s an example of a common meadow katydid singing.
Did you notice one of its antennae was shorter? Likely it got broken off, which seems it could be a real hazard with such long ones.
Check out all the different meadow katydid songs at the Songs of Insects website including one that sounds like a lawn sprinkler.
Have you heard meadow katydids sing?
