Nature Note: A Naturalist's Travels Through Nature

Tik. Tik. Tik. Tik-tik-tik-tik-gigigigigigigigigigigi. Tik. Tik. Tik-tik. Gigigigigigi. A high-pitched buzz, almost imperceptible shivers from the boughs of the spruce near my window. A small insect, barely a few inches long, sits on a branch. It cranks out a tune produced by it's wings rubbing against one another. This act is called stridulation and is being performed by a creature called a bush katydid. Now whether it is a northern bush ( Scudderia septentrionalis ), or a treetop bush ( S. fasciata ), or even a Texas bush katydid ( S. texensis ), I can't be certain. The fact is that my ears, as dull and imperceptive (at least compared to other animals) as they are, picked up these small vibrations used to attract a female into the male's territory. Those of us with access to trees, meadows, or even an open backyard can experience the variety of songs produced by this annual summer symphony. Their mixed signals and sounds delight us as we rest in our beds after a lon...

As I sit in my parent's kitchen having just returned from Pennsylvania for the winter, I'm thinking back on some of my teaching experiences that I've had over the past year or so and remembering the names children will give to certain animals. I mentioned one of these in post #125 when I was talking about what bugs were common in Pennsylvania during the fall. These would be the Common True Katydids ( Pterophylla camellifolia ) that the kids call "leafbugs". They're not wrong as they do look like a leaf has spawned legs and beady little eyes. But despite being named for something else entirely (the name Katydid is allegory about a girl who refused to tell the truth about something and suffered dire consequences as a result), but this other name suits them just as well. Another insect that springs to mind is the water strider ( Gerridae ) which is often misnamed as the "water spider". However, according to a quick glance on Wikipedia, they are ...