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Photo#1842771
Orchelimum - Orchelimum silvaticum - male

Orchelimum - Orchelimum silvaticum - Male
Austin, Travis County, Texas, USA
June 26, 2020

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Orchelimum - Orchelimum silvaticum - male Orchelimum - Orchelimum silvaticum - male Orchelimum - Orchelimum silvaticum - male

Moved
I see enough of the cercus here to be pretty certain this is O. silvaticum - and the female looks correct for this species too, especially if in the same vicinity

Moved from Greater Meadow Katydids.

 
Thank you!
I listened to the song online, and it seems to match - it's quite soft with a long gentle trill.
Do you know why the wings on both of mine are so short? Do some specimens just have shorter wings or do you think it's because they were raised in a butterfly cage? (They had plenty of room to moult in peace.)
Also, can you see enough of my Pediodectes (below) to determine the species? When you were in Texas, do you remember where you found this genus and what general habitat/surroundings?
I think I will release my male near where I found him so he can find a mate. I was curious about his song, but he doesn't appear to have wings and he doesn't make any sound.

 
katydids
I think the wing length on these guys can vary a bit - this looks like within the normal range of variation. A bit shorter than mine from College Station but not by enough to matter I think.

Rentz & Birchim (1968) note that Pediodectes is in need of revision - and I can find no more recent revisionary work on them. So I have not tried to tackle the matter seeing as I have only collected them once. That time was at night in Cameron county in scrubby dune habitat near the coast, where I found a female in vegetation and a male singing from low twigs. They definitely do sing even with their little wings that are tucked underneath the pronotum.

 
Scrubby dune
No scrubby dune around here. :)
It's good to know that they can sing!
Do you think Texas A&M College Station would have specimens of Pediodectes? I don't remember much variety in the few things I looked at, including Oecanthinae. What TAMU really needs is a talented graduate student from up north ... :)
I wonder if any of the universities have virtual tours of their insect collections.

Moved
Moved from ID Request.

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