57 s of calling, from Maricopa County, Ariz., 25.1°C. Dominant frequency 5.6 kHz. Recording by D.B. Weissman (S15-111, R15-291); used by permission.
This spectrogram is a 10 s excerpt of the 57 s audio file accessible above. The excerpt begins at 21 s.
Spectrogram showing first 6 chirps of 10 s sample above.
Spectrogram showing first 3 chirps of 10 s sample above; chirps are slowed to one-eighth speed. This lowers the dominant frequencies to one-eighth of what they were (frequency range at normal speed = 6.0-5.3 kHz; range at one-eighth speed = 0.75-0.66 kHz [=750-660 Hz]) and increases the duration by a factor of 8. Click on sound bar to hear graphed song.
Spectrogram, again showing first 3 chirps of 10 s sample above, but chirps are slowed to one-twelfth speed. This lowers the dominant frequencies to one-twelfth of what they were (frequency range at normal speed = 6.0-5.3 kHz; range at one-twelfth speed = 0.50-0.44 kHz [=500-440 Hz]) and increases the duration by a factor of 12. Click on sound bar to hear graphed song.
Song:
Weissman and Gray (2019) described the song as loud and unique, with a highly irregular "stuttered" series of chirps and a highly variable interchirp interval; typically 3-9 pulses per chirp (range 1-10); usually 120-240 chirps per minute. Pulse rate 70-110.
Identification:
A key to the adult males of native US Gryllus is in Weissman and Gray (2019).
Open desert grassland/scrubland at low elevations; occasionally found in mixed oak/juniper/pine woodland at higher elevations. Flies well and frequents lighted areas around human structures.
Life cycle:
No egg diapause. Probably two generations per year, perhaps dependent on rainfall.
Season:
Adults found from April to October. Breeds continuously in the laboratory.
Name derivation:
"Staccato" = "something that is abruptly discontinuous or disjointed in quality or character"; describes the male's calling song.
