Summer nights are filled with an iconic symphony of sounds. Crickets and cicadas are ones that everyone knows, but have you ever heard a bug say "Katy did, Katy didn't"?...
Named for the mating call of the female, Katydids are just one more instrument in that beautiful nightly concert.
We found this young little guy, called a nymph, spending time with our basil plant one evening. Interested to see what kind of grasshopper he was we set out to do some research...
... to our surprise we found out we had been mistaken and it was a Katydid and not a Grasshopper.
Although part of the long-horned grasshopper family, they are their own species and can be most easily identified by their extremely long antennae. We also found out that even though they have wings, many do not fly, but instead flutter and leap from leaf to leaf!
Doing a little research is a lot of fun, and often leads you to something new and exciting. So next time you see a bug you can't identify, start reading...
... you never know what you will find out.
Resources:
Upload a photo of your bug and get a response from an expert here!
or
Do it the old fashioned way with one of our favorite books here!
*Last time in Nature: Eye Spy