Bioacoustics
Guides
Amblycorypha parvipennis
Western Round-winged Katydid
Amblycorypha parvipennis, the western round-winged katydid, is a phaneropterine katydid in the family Tettigoniidae. It is found in North America, with confirmed records from Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and Missouri. Males produce calling songs for acoustic communication, a key feature of their mating behavior. The species exhibits typical katydid traits including leaf-mimicking wing venation and sound production via forewing stridulation.
Gryllidae
True crickets
Gryllidae, commonly known as true crickets, is a family of insects in the order Orthoptera, suborder Ensifera. Members are characterized by long, thread-like antennae, cylindrical bodies, enlarged hind femora adapted for jumping, and forewings modified for sound production. The family has undergone significant taxonomic revision, with many former subfamilies (including tree crickets, ground crickets, and sword-tail crickets) elevated to family status. True crickets exhibit worldwide distribution except Antarctica and are known for their acoustic communication, with males producing species-specific calling songs to attract females.
Gryllidea
crickets
Gryllidea is an infraorder within the suborder Ensifera comprising crickets and their relatives. The group contains two superfamilies—Grylloidea (true crickets, tree crickets, scaly crickets, and allies) and Gryllotalpoidea (mole crickets and ant crickets)—encompassing more than 6,000 described species globally. Members are characterized by acoustic communication through stridulation, with males producing species-specific songs to attract mates. The infraorder originated in the Triassic period approximately 250–200 million years ago and represents the third most diverse group within Orthoptera.
cricketsOrthopteraEnsiferaacoustic-communicationstridulationmole-cricketsant-cricketsmyrmecophilybioacousticsedible-insectsagricultural-pesthousehold-pestTriassic-originhemimetabolous-developmentkleptoparasitismchemical-mimicryautotomythigmotaxisinvasive-speciesDiestrammena-asynamoraAcheta-domesticusGryllodes-sigillatusGryllus-firmusParagordius-variushost-parasite-interactionsmitochondrial-genomicspositive-selectioncox1Nearctic-faunaYunnan-biodiversityurban-ecologysoil-ecosystem-engineeringdecomposerfood-securityalternative-proteinHadoa
Western Annual Cicadas
Hadoa is a genus of large-bodied cicadas (family Cicadidae) native to Western North America. The genus was erected in 2015 by Moulds to accommodate species previously placed in Tibicen, which was redefined to include only European species. Hadoa species are annual cicadas, with adults typically emerging during summer months. The genus contains approximately 20 species distributed across western North American habitats including deserts, woodlands, and montane regions.
Hapithus brevipennis
Short-winged Bush Cricket, Short-winged Meadow Katydid
Hapithus brevipennis is a small bush cricket species in the family Gryllidae, native to the southeastern United States. Adults are distinguished by their abbreviated wings, which give the species its common name. Males produce a distinctive song consisting of buzzes and ticks interspersed with pauses to attract females. The species is active in late summer and autumn, with females using a prominent ovipositor to deposit eggs in protected locations.
Megatibicen
Great Cicadas
Megatibicen is a genus of North American cicadas established in 2016, comprising approximately 10 species previously classified under Tibicen, Neotibicen, Ameritibicen, and Gigatibicen. These are large-bodied cicadas commonly known as 'Great Cicadas,' with males producing distinctive calling songs using tymbal organs. The genus exhibits notable diversity in the south-central and southwestern United States, including a recently described endemic species from the Mescalero-Monahans shinnery sands.
Megatibicen dorsatus-tremulus
bush cicada, prairie cicada, Cole's bush cicada
Megatibicen dorsatus-tremulus represents a cryptic species pair within the bush cicada group, with M. dorsatus (prairie cicada/bush cicada) and M. tremulus (Cole's bush cicada) being nearly identical in appearance and song. These large cicadas inhabit grassland and sand dune habitats across the central and southern Great Plains. The two species were long confused due to their similarity, with M. tremulus only recently recognized as distinct. They are distinguished by tymbal cover coloration—brown in M. dorsatus versus black in M. tremulus—and occupy slightly different habitats, with M. tremulus favoring sandier substrates.
Megatibicen harenosus
Great Mescalero Cicada
Megatibicen harenosus is a recently described cicada species endemic to the Mescalero-Monahans shinnery sands of New Mexico and Texas. It was formally described in 2017 based on distinct male genital morphology, color pattern, calling song characteristics, and ecological preferences. The species is closely related to M. tremulus, from which it differs significantly in four temporal song characters. Its restricted distribution in sandy habitats represents one of the most southwestern ranges of any Megatibicen species.
Neoconocephalus ensiger
Sword-bearing Conehead, Swordbearer
Neoconocephalus ensiger is a katydid species in the conehead tribe Copiphorini, recognized by the male's elongated, sword-like ovipositor-like structure at the abdomen tip. Males produce loud, distinctive songs through stridulation of modified forewings. The species occurs in grassland and prairie habitats across eastern and central North America. It is primarily nocturnal and has been observed molting to adulthood at night near ultraviolet light sources.
Neoconocephalus robustus
robust conehead, crepitating conehead
Neoconocephalus robustus, commonly known as the robust conehead or crepitating conehead, is a North American katydid in the family Tettigoniidae. It is notable for producing one of the loudest insect songs on record, reaching 116 decibels at a peak frequency of 8 kHz—audible from 500 meters away even inside a moving vehicle with closed windows. The song has a whining quality at distance but becomes painful to hear at close range. This species belongs to the subfamily Conocephalinae, a group characterized by their elongated, cone-shaped heads.
Neotibicen lyricen lyricen
Common Lyric Cicada, Lyric Cicada
Neotibicen lyricen lyricen is a subspecies of annual cicada in the family Cicadidae, commonly known as the Common Lyric Cicada. It produces a distinctive song that has been described as a continuous, high-pitched buzz or whine. Males produce sound using paired tymbal organs located on the ventral surface of the abdomen. The subspecies is found across eastern North America, with records from Florida to New York and throughout the Midwest. It has been observed in dry-mesic deciduous forests, hilltop prairies, and woodland edges. Activity peaks in late summer, typically from August through early autumn.
Ormia
Ormia is a genus of nocturnal tachinid flies renowned for their exceptional sound localization abilities. Females are phonotactic parasitoids that locate hosts by detecting calling songs, then deposit larvae on or near crickets and katydids. The genus has become a model system in auditory neuroscience and bioinspired engineering due to its mechanically coupled ears that achieve directional precision rivaling human hearing despite minute interaural distances. Research has focused primarily on Ormia ochracea, though multiple species have been studied for biological control applications.
Ormia ochracea
Ormia ochracea is a small yellow nocturnal tachinid fly renowned for its exceptional directional hearing and acoustic parasitism of field crickets. Females locate singing male crickets through phonotaxis, then deposit planidial larvae that develop internally and kill the host within approximately 7 days. The fly's auditory system employs mechanically coupled tympanal membranes that amplify nanosecond-scale interaural time differences, enabling sound localization precision comparable to humans despite an interear distance of less than 1 mm. This unique physiology has made O. ochracea a prominent model organism for auditory neuroscience and bioinspired microphone design.
Pterophylla
true katydid
Pterophylla is a genus of true katydids in the family Tettigoniidae, containing approximately five described species distributed primarily in North America. The genus is best known for the northern true katydid (P. camellifolia), whose distinctive "katy-did, katy-didn't" call is a familiar sound of late summer evenings in deciduous forests. Males of this genus produce complex acoustic signals including solo calling, alternating calling with neighboring males, aggressive sounds, and disturbance sounds, with well-studied phonoresponse behavior involving reciprocal inhibition and post-inhibitory excitation.
Pterophylla camellifolia
common true katydid, northern true katydid, rough-winged katydid
Pterophylla camellifolia is a large, nearly flightless katydid native to eastern North America. Males produce the iconic three-pulsed "ka-ty-did" call that gave katydids their common name. The species inhabits the canopy of deciduous trees and moves primarily by walking, running, or hopping rather than flying. Populations exhibit geographic variation in song structure, with northern populations producing two- to four-pulsed songs, southeastern populations faster multi-pulsed choruses, southwestern populations one- to two-pulsed songs, and a distinctive 8-15 pulse song restricted to central Iowa. Three subspecies are recognized based on morphological and geographic differences.