Some type of cricket….
I spotted these large crickets at a rest stop near Winnemucca, NV. Their bodies resemble the cave crickets or camel crickets but the legs are not so long and are not striped. Their bodies were between 2-3 inches long. They are large and sturdy, and that ovipositor is pretty amazing. The birds liked ‘em even more than I did. The last picture with my foot is just to give a sense of scale. What kind of cricket are they, anyway? Thanks!
Michelle
Hi Michelle,
This is a Mormon Cricket, Anabrus simplex. It is found from Missouri to Southeastern California and north to Alberta. It will devour many types of grains. According to legend and the Audubon Guide: “This common cricket got its common name after thousands suddenly attacked the Mormon pioneers’ first crops in Utah in 1848. Fortunately, many California gulls arrived in time to devour the crickets and save the crops.”
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Posted 01 August 2005
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What is it????
Found this one in the front yard, I’m assuming some sort of Katydid. I’m not sure though. Any help you could give in ID would be great
Thanks
Allen Meeks
Spicewood, TX
Hi Allen,
This is one of the Shield-Backed Katydids, Neobarrettia spinosa female.
Ed. Note: (11/17/2005) Late Breaking Etomological Update
Greater Arid-land Katydid
Hey Bugman
I think you have a Common name mix up on your katydid page, the latin name is correct. The katydid that you guys called a Shield back Katydid’s common name is actually Greater Arid-Land Katydid, that belongs in the sub-family Listroscelinae (Predaceous Katydids). They are only two species of the genus Neobattettia in the US. The Greater Arid-land Katydid has a black outline on the pronotum, the Lesser Arid-Land Katydid’s pronotum is green.
Mike
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Posted 26 June 2005
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Ecuadorean saddle back cricket??
Hi Daniel:
Found this cricket in our garden while removing a dead leaf base from a vetchia palm. Looked in your web site and looks like the saddle bag bush cricket or weta. I think I have seen it before in our lawn, coming out from holes in the ground. I would appreaciate any information on it. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Erika Schwarz Wilson
Istana, Barbasquillo
Manta- Ecuador
Hi again Erika,
Nice to hear from you again. You have a member of the Family Tettigoniidae which contains Long-Horned Grasshoppers and Katydids as well as the Shield-Back and Bush Katydids which are sometimes called Crickets. Sorry I can’t identify your exact species. Your example is a female recognizeable by her flat, swordlike ovipositor, her egg laying organ.
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Posted 07 May 2005
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Texas bug
Hi,
Me and my wife caught this bug at night in the Dallas area of texas, there were several out at night making a loud continous noise. We have no idea what type of bug it is looks sort of like a grasshopper and kinda like a katydid.
Thanks,
Chris & Danielle
Hi Chris and Danielle,
We decided to get the opinion of Eric Eaton before responding to you. Here is what he has to say: “Looks like a coneheaded katydid, if the antennae are long and filamentous. Good thing she is holding it that way, they can bite REALLY hard! I speak from experience:-) If the antennae are shorter, and sword-shaped, then it is a slant-faced grasshopper of some kind. That is the best I can do, not being able to manipulate the image in any way.”
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Posted 08 April 2005
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Katydid pics
Hiya Bug People,
I ran across your site while searching the web for info on spiders…see I found a spider in my hair while watching TV.. (and any spider that interrupted my TV time was definitely Poisonous and EVIL!!) But I have now come to the conclusion it wasn’t a brown recluse and am feeling much better. But I saw that you had several pics of Katydids and the letters are usually from people that think they are "icky" So I wanted to share these photos of the Katydid my family really really enjoyed getting to meet last summer. I don’t know how anyone could be afraid of them or think they are "icky" This Katydid was so easy going and let us hold him and sat on our shoulders for the whole afternoon. I was scared to let him go back in the tree where we found him cause we have a HUGE Yellow Garden spider near the same tree.. and I didn’t want to have to explain why Nice Mr. Spider was eating our friend "Katy"!! Can you say Therapy!!
LOL anyways I hope you enjoy the photos.
Happy Spring,
Kelly Salzman
North Carolina
Hi Kelly,
Thank you for the sweet letter. We love your photo.
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Posted 06 March 2005
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Hello Again,
I was taking a walk the other day and got a picture of this grasshopper on a brick fence with my camera phone. He was farley large about two or three inches and his wings looked like blades of grass, he was very neat. What kind is it??? I live in montebello, california. Thanks for the website!!!
Sincerely,
Darcy Jimenez
Hi Darcy,
You have a Katydid, but it is difficult to determine the species from your photograph. They are usually seen and not heard because they are excellently camouflaged in foilage.
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Posted 11 February 2005
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Insect identification- grasshopper?
Dear Sir/Madam
I live in the UK and found this insect in the packaging of a USB hub, that said it was made in China. Is it possible you could identify this for me. Actual size is 6 cm long from nose to wing tip.
Many thanks
Pat Jones (Mrs) 57yrs
Hi Pat,
Your foundling bears an uncanny resemblance to a group of Katydids known as Cone-heads. She is a female, recognizeable by the large ovipositor on the tail end. Your story helps to explain how often exotic plants and animals often find themselves far from home, and if the conditions are right, they are able to prosper and multiply.
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Posted 06 January 2005
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Unkown cricket(?)
Hi Bug Man
This critter was photographed in the Big Bend area of West Texas in Dec 04. Can you ID this fellow? Long antennae suggest cricket to me and abdoman banding suggests Jeruselem, but not really, Can you help?
Thank very much
Phil Crosby
Hi Phil,
You have one of the Shield-back Katydids, more specifically Neobarrettia spinosa. Your species is a female recognizeable by her long ovipositor. They are predatory.
Ed. Note: (11/17/2005) Late Breaking Etomological Update
Greater Arid-land Katydid
Hey Bugman
I think you have a Common name mix up on your katydid page, the latin name is correct. The katydid that you guys called a Shield back Katydid’s common name is actually Greater Arid-Land Katydid, that belongs in the sub-family Listroscelinae (Predaceous Katydids). They are only two species of the genus Neobattettia in the US. The Greater Arid-land Katydid has a black outline on the pronotum, the Lesser Arid-Land Katydid’s pronotum is green.
Mike
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Posted 14 December 2004
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4 bug pix, ID for spider?
Hi!
Sent some of these earlier, but got an error message so I’m trying again. First one is a caterpillar found on my passion flower vine, second one is a katydid in the basil. third is a spider (orb weaver?), the last is my favorite spider picture, great green and brown coloring. Can you ID the last one? Thanks! Love your site, found it when I was trying to ID a scary
bug which turned out to be a Jerusalem cricket.
Donna B.
San Diego
Hi Donna,
Thanks for the Katydid photo.
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Posted 06 November 2004
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Freaked out by a gigantic Green Grasshopper!
These were taken BEFORE we relocated the yucky thing!
As you can see about 10 minutes later the thing was back in our closed garage!
What is this and is it laying eggs?
Jaymie M In Irvine, CA
Hi Jaymie,
You have sent in photos of a Broad-Winged Katydid, Microcentrum rhombifolium, which will not lay eggs in your garage. They lay eggs on twigs. They are usually not noticed on plants since they are such good leaf mimics.
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Posted 31 August 2004
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Cricket?
I can’t tell you what a find you were on the internet. Today, I was photographing insects on milk weed. I found six different insects. These three are not in any of my books. I think this is a tree cricket of some kind.
They where in Orland Grassland in Orland Park Illinois.Thanks again… you are great!
Suzanne
Hi Suzanne,
This is a nymph stage of a Long Horned Grasshopper, probably the subfamily Conocephalinae, known as Meadow Grasshoppers by Borror and Delong and as Cone-headed Grasshoppers online. Our best guess might be Conocephalus dorsalis, a Short Winged Cone-headed Grasshopper which we found photographed as an adult female on Angelfire. Your photo is of a young female because of the ovipositor.
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Posted 03 June 2004
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What the hell is this Bug?
It is some type of dead and sqashed Orthopteran, probably a grasshopper. Though the body is very short, the long straight wings and long jumping legs indicate some type of grasshopper. Your coin is unfamiliar, and you gave no location, so any attempt at an exact species is impossible.
Update: (05/30/2006) Recently, upon receiving additional images of this Crested Katydid, we properly identified it on our Katydid page. This letter just arrived though.
I can ID both the coin and the ‘hopper on your 02/19/2004 entry It’s the crested Grasshopper (Alectoria superba family Tettigonidae) and is a native of central Australia as is the Australian 10 cent coin shown with it! Actually – no need as I see several other people have already done so ahead of me. I liked the site tho’
Sincerely
Martyn Robinson
Hi Martyn,
Thanks to your letter, we realized we still had an unidentified image of the Crested Katydid remaining on the grasshopper page. We have posted your letter and cleaned up our classification.
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