Reproduction

    The male Oecanthus fultoni makes a high pitched song to attract females. Once a female is near the male, he switches songs to a lower courtship song (Brown 1999). Females can choose the song they are most attracted to; they follow the song until they reach a male. Also if the female is in close proximity to the singing male, his scent can lead her to him. Also females may be more inclined to follow in the direction of synchronizing males than to follow the call of a lone male (Walker 1969).

    The male initiates mating by backing into her, but the female can reject him if she chooses. When mating occurs, the female eats the thick secretions from the male's metanoal gland that is located near his hind wings (Brown 1999). The secretions increase the likelihood of reproduction because they provide the female with essential nutrients.

    In the fall, females drill a hole in a branch or stem and lay their eggs. The eggs hatch in the spring as nymphs. The snowy tree cricket has direct development because when they hatch the offspring look like little adults, but without wings. The nymphs go through several stages of maturation and at the end of each stage they molt and look more and more like an adult. You will know it is a mature adult when you see that it has two pairs of wings. They emerge as fully mature adults during midsummer to early autumn and that is when the mating season begins (Brown 1999). The mating season lasts up until the first frost.


                                                                                                 
                                                                                                     

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