Jumping Bush Cricket (Orocharis saltator)
Song of a Jumping Bush Cricket (scroll down for explanation and additional recordings!).
Often heard but seldom seen, the light brown Jumping Bush Cricket is a common inhabitant of rural and urban backyards. Named because it will jump when disturbed, the arboreal bush cricket has a unique flattened or compressed appearance. Males sing from vine covered tree trunks or dense herbaceous growth, as well as from the crowns of trees. A careful search of tree trunks at night may reveal one singing from a partially concealed perch.
They are also fond of Boxwood plantings. Dozens of singing males might be found in a single bush. Vines that climb the walls of houses or fences is another favored haunt.
Jumping Bush Crickets are on the move. They are expanding farther north with reports of singing being heard in Ithaca, NY. They are also expanding to the northeast along Lake Erie with reports of singing Jumping Bush Crickets being heard from Cleveland all the way to Erie, PA. No doubt, there are many locations in the northeastern U.S. where this species is now established. However, we do not have reports or records from those areas. As more data comes in, we will update the maps accordingly.
Song: A clear, brief trill or chirp, repeated at the rate of one or two per second. Neighboring males often sing at slightly different pitches, perhaps making them easier for females to locate. In late August they can be heard singing as soon as the sun goes down. Later in the season, after the first frosts, males sing from less concealed perches and may even be found on the sides of buildings near plantings. The frequency of songs is about 5 kHz.
Sonogram of a Jumping Bush Cricket. © Wil Hershberger.
Jumping Bush Cricket
Our Insect Musicians:
Thumbnail Guide to All Species
Navigate to Species Pages:
Spring and Fall Field Cricket
Southern Wood Cricket
Southeastern Field Cricket
Eastern Striped Cricket
Japanese Burrowing Cricket
Ground Crickets (Nemobiinae):
Allard’s Ground Cricket
Carolina Ground Cricket
Confused Ground Cricket
Striped Ground Cricket
Southern Ground Cricket
Sphagnum Ground Cricket
Variegated Ground Cricket
Spotted Ground Cricket
Tinkling Ground Cricket
Cuban Ground Cricket
Tree Crickets (Oecanthinae):
Black-horned Tree Cricket
Forbes’s Tree Cricket
Broad-winged Tree Cricket
Davis’s Tree Cricket
Fast-calling Tree Cricket
Four-spotted Tree Cricket
Narrow-winged Tree Cricket
Pine Tree Cricket
Snowy Tree Cricket
Two-spotted Tree Cricket
Trigs and Bush Crickets (Eneopterinae & Trigonidiinae):
Jumping Bush Cricket
Columbian Trig
Handsome Trig
Say’s Trig
Thomas’s Trig
Slow-tinkling Trig
Mole Crickets (Gryllotalpidae):
Northern Mole Cricket
Southern Mole Cricket
FAMILY DESCRIPTION
Saltmarsh Meadow Katydid
Short-winged Meadow Katydid
Slender Meadow Katydid
Woodland Meadow Katydid
Black-sided Meadow Katydid
Long-tailed Meadow Katydid
Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid
Agile Meadow Katydid
Dusky-faced Meadow Katydid
Stripe-faced Meadow Katydid
Nimble Meadow Katydid
Black-legged Meadow Katydid
Common Meadow Katydid
Gladiator Meadow Katydid
Handsome Meadow Katydid
Lesser Pine Meadow Katydid
Long-spurred Meadow Katydid
Red-headed Meadow Katydid
Coneheads (Copiphorinae):
FAMILY DESCRIPTION
Round-tipped Conehead
Nebraska Conehead
Robust Conehead
Slightly Musical Conehead
Sword-bearing Conehead
False Robust Conehead
Marsh Conehead
Black-nosed Conehead
True Katydids (Pseudophyllinae):
FAMILY DESCRIPTION
Common True Katydid
False Katydids (Phaneropterinae):
FAMILY DESCRIPTION
Clicker Round-winged Katydid
Common Virtuoso Katydid
Rattler Round-winged Katydid
Oblong-winged Katydid
Great Angle-wing
Lesser Angle-wing
Broad-winged Bush Katydid
Curved-tailed Bush Katydid
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid
Northern Bush Katydid
Texas Bush Katydid
Treetop Bush Katydid
Modest Katydid
Shield-backed Katydids (Tettigoniinae):
FAMILY DESCRIPTION
American Shieldback
Least Shieldback
Protean Shieldback
Robust Shieldback
Roesel’s Katydid
Band-winged Grasshoppers (Oedipodinae):
Boll’s & Carolina Grasshoppers
Marsh Meadow Grasshopper