File:Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution (1923) (14764336602).jpg

Identifier: annualreportofbo1923smit (find matches)
Title: Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution
Year: 1846 (1840s)
Authors: Smithsonian Institution. Board of Regents United States National Museum. Report of the U.S. National Museum Smithsonian Institution. Report of the Secretary
Subjects: Smithsonian Institution Smithsonian Institution. Archives Discoveries in science
Publisher: Washington : Smithsonian Institution
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

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two species of the angular-winged katydids in theUnited States, both belonging to the genus Microcentrwm, one dis-tinguished as the larger angular-winged katydid, M. rhonibifolium,and the other as the smaller angular-winged katydid, M. retinerve.The females of the larger species (fig. 9), which is the more commonone, reach a length of 2% inches measured to the tips of the wings.They lay flat, oval eggs, stuck in rows overlapping like scales alongthe surface of some twig or on the edge of a leaf. These katydids are attracted to lights and may frequently befound on warm summer nights in the shrubbery about the house, 420 ANNUAL, REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1923 or even on the porch and the screen doors. They usually maketheir presence known by their soft but high-pitched notes resemblingtzeet uttered in short series, the first notes repeated rapidly, theothers successively more slowly as the tone becomes also less sharpand piercing. This is the song of the larger species and may be
Text Appearing After Image:
Fig. 9. -The larger angular-winged katydid, Microcentrum rJiombifolium (one-fourthlarger than natural size). Upper, a male; lower, a female written tzeet-tzeet-tzeet-tzeet-tzek-tzek-tzek-tzuk-tzuk, though thehigh key and shrill tones of the notes must be imagined. Riley de-scribes the song as a series of raspings as of a stiff quill drawnacross a coarse file, and Allard says the notes are sharp, snappingcrepitations and sound like the slow snapping of the teeth of astiff comb as some object is slowly drawn across it. He represents INSECT MUSICIANS SNODGRASS 421 them thus: tek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-ek-tzip. But, however thesong of Microcentrum is to be translated into English, it containsno suggestion of the notes of his famous cousin, the true katydid.Yet most people confuse the two species, or, rather, hearing the oneand seeing the other, they draw the obvious conclusion that theone seen makes the sounds that are heard. The angular-winged katydids are very gentle and unsuspiciou

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