David Element
Wildlife
Photography and Digital Video Images
________________________________________________________
Grasshoppers and Crickets 4 – Italian Tree Crickets
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (m)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (m)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens
(m)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (m)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (m)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (f)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (f)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (f)
ITALIAN TREE CRICKET Oecanthus
pellucens (f)
·
The Italian Tree Cricket Oecanthus pellucens may have recently
established a foothold on the Kent coast in the UK (2015) but it is far
more likely to be encountered on the Continent where this species is widespread
and abundant. These predominantly nocturnal true crickets are much easier to
hear than they are to see unless one is lucky enough to spot one that is active
in daylight and even if the observer is equipped with a torch and standing only
a short distance away from the apparent source of stridulation
they can be surprisingly elusive. They are quite mobile and in common with many
other orthopterans they are ‘ventriloquial’, essentially
generating sound that appears to originate from a different direction than its
source. The first three photographs are believed to be either of a penultimate
instar male nymph or of a brachypterous (short-winged) adult male (the author
is happy to be corrected either way). Quite appropriately the photographs were
taken in Toscana (Tuscany), Italy. This species is morphologically almost
identical to the recently separated O. dulcisonans
(also found in Italy) and as the distribution of this species has not been
evaluated fully it cannot be discounted that the images above may be of this
insect as the relevant ventral identification features cannot be seen in the
photographs. There are subtle differences in wing-length (although this can be
variable) and it is probable that the fully winged male shown in the fourth and
fifth photographs is O pellucens.
·
David’s
short film of a rather sedentary female Tree Cricket (so
unfortunately no stridulation on the soundtrack) may
be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFh82_Zf6aU&list=PL4AirIEc0Nocv0Tjw-fnE-ZZnVrGmXd39&index=20&t=0s.
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