Nicaragua tree cricket
Perhaps the cutest singer ever …
This is an adult male Nicaragua tree cricket. It can sometimes be difficult to tell male Otte’s tree crickets apart from Nicaragua tree crickets. The biggest clue is the width of the wings. Note how these wings are just barely wider than the abdomen. (Otte’s wings are wider.) Also note that the prominent dark markings on the wings look like a < > pattern. Even though there are two faint lines below if that resemble an X…..the <> is very prominent. Females of these two species are much easier to tell apart.
Here he has lifted his wings to sing. This species was named for the area where it was found – Cerro Jesus in northern Nicaragua.
Below is a female Neoxabea cerrojesusensis. Note there are only two prominently visible dark blotches on the wings.
A closer view of the metanotal gland and abdomen exposed when he lifts his wings to sing.
Here is a waveform of the long warm up stuttering, and then ending with a brief loud burst of trilling of Nicaragua tree cricket.
