Songs of Insects

False Robust Conehead (Neoconocephalus bivocatus)

Song of a False Robust Conehead (scroll down for explanation and additional recordings!).

As you might expect, the False Robust Conehead is very similar to the Robust Conehead, however, they are slightly smaller, begin singing earlier in the evening, and have an immaculate cone. The False Robust Conehead is found in weedy fields, over-grown roadsides, and old pastures. Since they sing while it is still light out, it is easy to track them down and get a look at one while it is singing. They will see you coming and move to the opposite side of the grass stem as you get closer. If you remain motionless for a few minutes, he will resume singing. You can often get within a yard or so of a singing male. This can lead to great views of a singing insect.

Cone from below.

False Robust Conehead

Song: A continuous buzz that is perceived to be at a lower pitch than the song of the Robust Conehead. Peak frequencies are about 8 kHz and at 9.7kHz. The pulse rate (13ms) is twice that of the Robust Conehead (5ms) giving the impression of a lower pitched song. If you listen carefully, you might be able to hear the two-toned sound of this species’ song. Look at the sonogram below to see the diagnostic, two-noted structure of this species song. False-robust Coneheads sing loudly, but not nearly as loud as Robust Coneheads.
 

Sonogram of a False Robust Conehead. © Wil Hershberger.