Songs of Insects

Two-spotted Tree Cricket (Neoxabea bipunctata)

Song of a Two-spotted Tree Cricket (scroll down for explanation and additional recordings!).

The Two-spotted Tree Cricket is an arboreal species attracted to dense vegetation, especially thick stands of young trees, where males sing from the underside of broad leaves. Generally stays well off the ground, making this species difficult to observe or collect. This is the largest tree cricket in our area, however, and they can be plentiful. It is easily recognized by its reddish body with tan wings and legs. The common name is derived from the fact that females usually have two prominent dark spots on their wings.

Two-spotted Tree Cricket

Song: A plaintive, dissonant, buzzy trill at about 3.5 kHz, with a distinctive “screaming” quality. The pulse rate is about 110 per second. Trills may be continuous, but they are usually marked by brief pauses occurring every few seconds or so. Trills are sometimes preceded by stuttering notes. During mating, the male produces a series of high-pitched clicks and scrapes that sound nothing like their typical song.

Sonogram of a Two-spotted Tree Cricket. © Wil Hershberger.