Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
Upcoming Events

National Moth Week photos of insects and people. Here's how to add your images.

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 BugGuide Gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Discussion, insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29

Photos of insects and people from the 2015 gathering in Wisconsin, July 10-12

Photos of insects and people from the 2014 gathering in Virginia, June 4-7.

Photos of insects and people from the 2013 gathering in Arizona, July 25-28

Photos of insects and people from the 2012 gathering in Alabama

Photos of insects and people from the 2011 gathering in Iowa
TaxonomyBrowse
Info
ImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids (Orthoptera) » Long-horned Orthoptera (Ensifera) » Katydids, Camel Crickets, and relatives (Tettigoniidea) » Katydids (Tettigoniidae) » Coneheads and Meadow Katydids (Conocephalinae) » Meadow Katydids (Conocephalini) » Lesser Meadow Katydids (Conocephalus)

Genus Conocephalus - Lesser Meadow Katydids

Classification · Other Common Names · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Food · Life Cycle · See Also · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited
Katydid - Conocephalus Short-winged Meadow Katydid - Conocephalus brevipennis - female Katydid ID Please - Conocephalus fasciatus - male Short-winged Meadow katydid - Conocephalus brevipennis - female Orthoptera - small, ruddy in color - Conocephalus nemoralis - female Katydid - Conocephalus fasciatus - male Woodland Meadow Katydid, lateral - Conocephalus nemoralis - male Conocephalus fasciatus - male
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Orthoptera (Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids)
Suborder Ensifera (Long-horned Orthoptera)
Infraorder Tettigoniidea (Katydids, Camel Crickets, and relatives)
Family Tettigoniidae (Katydids)
Subfamily Conocephalinae (Coneheads and Meadow Katydids)
Tribe Conocephalini (Meadow Katydids)
Genus Conocephalus (Lesser Meadow Katydids)
Other Common Names
Smaller Meadow Katydids
Explanation of Names
Conocephalus Thunberg, 1815
Numbers
Arnett, p. 162, (1) and nearctica.com list 18 species.
Size
10-27 mm (head to tip of wings), body length 12-17 mm
Identification
See Singing Insects of North America. Compare the usually larger, chunkier Greater Meadow Katydids, Orchelimum. Females of Conocephalus usually have straight ovipositors, while female Orchelimum have curved ovipositors. Many Conocephalus seem to have a clear green "face", while many Orchelimum have some white mottling or other coloration such as red.
Range
widely dist. (BG data)
Habitat
Fields, meadows
Season
Late summer to frost. July-October (Michigan, North Carolina), some species later in year in south.
Food
Food habits similar to Orchelimum--feed on leaves, flowers, seeds, and pollen of forbs and grasses. Occasionally predaceous on other insects, less so than Orchelimum. (2)
Life Cycle
Females oviposit in grass-stems. One generation per year.
See Also
Greater Meadow Katydids, Orchelimum
Print References
Arnett, p. 162 (1)
Bland, pp. 146-150 (2)
Capinera, pp. 181-182, plate 40 (3)
Helfer, p. 266, figs. 409-410 (4)
Brimley, p. 20 (5)
Borror and White, pp. 82-83, plate 2--C. brevipennis (6)
Rehn JAG, Hebard M. 1915. Studies in American Tettigoniidae. V. A synopsis of the species of the genus Conocephalus (Xiphidium of authors) found in North America north of Mexico. Trans. Am. Entomol. Soc. 41: 155-224. See reference page at SINA for a pdf version.
Internet References
Singing Insects of North America: genus page, species list, synonym list.
Works Cited
1.American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico
Ross H. Arnett. 2000. CRC Press.
2.Orthoptera of Michigan
Roger Bland. 2003. Michigan State University Extension.
3.Field Guide To Grasshoppers, Katydids, And Crickets Of The United States
John L. Capinera, Ralph D. Scott, Thomas J. Walker. 2004. Cornell University Press.
4.How to Know the Grasshoppers, Cockroaches, and Their Allies
Jacques R. Helfer. 1962. Wm. C. Brown Company.
5.Insects of North Carolina
C.S. Brimley. 1938. North Carolina Department of Agriculture.
6.A Field Guide to Insects
Richard E. White, Donald J. Borror, Roger Tory Peterson. 1998. Houghton Mifflin Co.
Contributed by Cotinis on 13 September, 2004 - 9:15pm
Additional contributions by Chuck Entz, Mike Quinn, Chuck Sexton, T. Hedlund
Last updated 10 June, 2020 - 4:32pm

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2021 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Statement
Site Map
Contact