Episode 70: Lesser Anglewing – Voice of the Wild

This is Brodie with Illinois Extension and I’m here with a new “voice of the wild”

This night singing insect calls from the tops of trees, usually towards the tips of branches and for this reason they’re more often heard than seen, In the event you find a male at eye level, you’ll see the distinctive mark that sets them apart from their larger sibling; a brown patch between the wings on the stridulatory field, which is a specialized part of the forewing that katydid’s use to create their songs. This is the lesser anglewing.

This katydid can be differentiated from the greater anglewing by their smaller size, the lack of a tooth on the forward edge of the pronotum behind the head, that brown patch on the males, by their range; they are a more southeastern species, and by their song - its a little rasping rattle composed of four or five distinct notes. And here it is again.

Thank you to the Macaulay library at the Cornell lab for today’s sound. Learn more about voice of the wild at go.illinois.edu/VOW