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John L. Capinera [grasshoppers]
Ralph D. Scott [artist] Thomas J. Walker [katydids & crickets] Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York; 2005, 280pp, 6 1/8 x 9 1/4 inches. 357 maps, 84 line drawings, 12 halftones, 210 color images in a 48-page insert. |
Description: This book was written to help all those who wish to identify U.S. orthopterans, including amateur naturalists, students in entomology and natural history courses, and professional biologists. It is the first identification manual that covers U.S. grasshoppers, katydids, and crickets illustrated with color pictures, distribution maps for all covered species, and images of the songs of crickets and katydids. It treats more than a third of the species found in the U.S. and Canada in brief, easy-to-understand sections that describe distribution, identifying features, ecology, and similar species. The book's extensive introductory material includes discussions of morphology, life histories, ecological and economic significance, sound production, and collection, preservation, and culture. About 40% of the main portion of the book, the species treatments, deals with katydids and crickets.
Price: As little as $28 for a new copy of the paperback.
Where to purchase: Your local or online bookstore.
Relationship to SINA: The Field Guide deals with all sorts of Orthoptera, not just crickets and katydids. In much of the United States, especially in open habitats, most orthopterans are grasshoppers, in terms of both individuals and species. The Field Guide is compact, durable, and easy to carry and consult, indoors or out. Its introductory material and appendices treat subjects not covered in SINA, such as collection methods and pronunciation of scientific names. On the other hand, SINA complements the Field Guide's treatment of crickets and katydids by including all species that occur in the continental United States and Canada, by presenting many color photographs, and by providing recorded songs that can be played by clicking on the graphic representations of the songs (spectrographs and wave forms).