Sandy-soil-habitat
Guides
Gryllus firmus
Sand Field Cricket, Sand Cricket
Gryllus firmus, the sand field cricket, is a wing-polymorphic cricket native to the southeastern United States. It exhibits a distinctive chirping call that distinguishes it from the trilling calls of closely related species. The species is notable for producing two egg types—fast-developing and diapause eggs—within single clutches, an adaptation to unpredictable conditions in sandy habitats. Wing morphs are associated with trade-offs between dispersal and reproduction: long-winged individuals can fly but have reduced fecundity, while short-winged individuals have enhanced reproductive output. The species hybridizes with Gryllus pennsylvanicus where their ranges overlap.
wing-polymorphismbet-hedgingdiapausehybrid-zoneacoustic-signalinglife-history-trade-offparasitismGryllus-firmus/Gryllus-pennsylvanicus-hybridizationcuticular-hydrocarbonsmate-choiceinbreeding-depressionextra-nuclear-inheritancematernal-effectshorsehair-wormParagordius-variuseugregarinetemperature-dependent-chirpingDolbear's-lawspeciationsexual-selectionimmunity-reproduction-trade-offflight-muscle-histolysissandy-soil-habitatephemeral-habitatcolonizing-speciesphenotypic-plasticityRNAinon-model-organismevolutionary-developmental-biologyStictiella emarginata
sand wasp
Stictiella emarginata is a solitary sand wasp in the family Crabronidae, subfamily Bembicinae. It constructs nests in sandy soils and provisions cells with lepidopteran larvae, primarily Noctuidae and Hesperiidae. The species occurs across eastern North America from northern Michigan to the Atlantic Coast, with a flight season concentrated in late June through early August. Nesting behavior includes temporary nest closure, mound leveling, and orientation flights.
solitary-waspsand-waspnest-provisioninglepidopteran-predatoreastern-North-AmericaBembicinaeCrabronidaeHymenopterasandy-soil-habitattemporary-nest-closureorientation-flightmound-levelingNoctuidaeHesperiidaelate-summer-flight-seasonOntarioMichiganNew-Yorksand-prairieinsect-predatorground-nesting-waspsand-blowout-habitatCanadian-Forces-Base-BordenSimcoe-CountyCresson-1865emarginate-clypeusdisjunct-distribution-misconceptiongeographic-bridgemuseum-recordsfield-studiesnest-architectureprey-transportprovisioning-behaviorcell-constructionprey-storagelarval-developmentsolitary-HymenopteraApoideaSpheciformesAculeataApocritaHexapodaArthropodaInsectaAnimaliaEukaryotaCatalogue-of-LifeGBIFiNaturalistCanadian-Field-NaturalistKurczewskiBoyle2005KrombeinWillinkGillaspyBohartEvansMatthewsPateTimberlakeCooperHallIrwinSchlingerBallmerYanegaUCR-Entomology-Research-MuseumBembicid-HoldingsNyssonidaeBembicidaeBembiciniStictiellinaStictiellaStictiella-emarginataStictiella-bohartiStictiella-corniculataStictiella-evansiStictiella-fergusoniStictiella-flavescensStictiella-pulchellaStictiella-pulchella-serrataStictiella-p.-pulchellaXerostictiaMicrostictiaGlenostictiaStenioliaBembixBicyrtesEdithaMicrobembexRubricaStenogorytesStizusBembecinusStizoidesGorytesArgogorytesArigorytesClitemnestraHarpactusHoplisoidesLestiphorusMegistommumOryttusPsammaletesPseudoplisusSagenistaSpheciusTanyoprymnusTrichogorytesXerogorytesAlyssonDidineisAmmatomusAfrogorytesHapalomellinusNyssonEpinyssonFoxiaHyponyssonLosadaMetanyssonZanyssonAcanthostethus