Say’s Trig Cricket – Anaxipha exigua

Family Trigonidiinae (Winged Bush Crickets)
Live adult male and female crickets photographed at DuPage County, Illinois.

True crickets are harmless nocturnal insects famous for their chirping, technically known as stridulation. The sound has become a literal indication of “nothing happening,” in popular culture.

Only male crickets chirp, usually to attract females or repel other males. In a nutshell: the sound is produced when the cricket rubs the serrated edges of his wings together.

Like many processes in cold-blooded animals, the rate of chirping is dependant on the ambient air temperature, and it is possible to calculate approximate air temperature in degrees Fahrenheit by counting the chirps per 14 seconds and adding 40.

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Tree Encyclopedia / North American Insects & Spiders

Online since 2002