Meconema thalassinum (2)

Insecta: Orthoptera: Ensifera: Meconematidae

Another possible male of Meconema thalassinum drumming was found after filtering a recording including the strong songs of a field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus and a cone-head cricket Ruspolia nitidula. Now it seems to be more high pitched, but that must perhaps be dependent on the substrate. The three first "echemes" last 437, 404 and 534 ms, containing 27, 24 and 33 "leg-hits"; that is a rate of 59-61 hits/s.

I have hard filtered the other species to allow to hear the insect drumming. As it's shown in the oscillogram, it seems to be a crescendo in the leg hits, and the last one is the loudest. That happens on bursts one and two only; in the other two the amplitude is similar.

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering):
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16951080/Meconema_thalassinum_%282%29

Recorded the 15.ix.2012, 09:28 pm, 17ºC, in a fallow field edged by a hedgerow in a stone oak Quercus ilex domain.
[Iberian peninsula: Catalonia: Girona province: Alt Empordà: Albanyà: Can Ferrers, 375 m][ICC map]

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]

Meconema thalassinum (1)

Insecta: Orthoptera: Ensifera: Meconematidae

I did'nt advice it until I heard the recording at home, and made me laugh ;-). This insects drumms with the tarsus of one hind leg over the substrate, usually a leave.

Here it drums at 2", 14", 21", 31" and 42", but the recording is condensed; in the original one, the burts were made at, 15, 27, 41, 64 and 105 seconds, that is, there were 12, 14, 23 and 41 seconds in between . The bursts last 0.8, 1.1, 1.2 and 0.8 s. In the first two "echemes" that were analyzed, there was a pulse rate of 77.2 and 76.3, which is the double that what is commonly said (30-40/s at temperatures up to 25ºC, Ragge and Reynolds, 1998).

I have not serously filtered the recording, as it's easy to hear, although there are another artists (in order of appearence: Gryllus campestris, Alytes obstetricans, Mecome athalassinum and Uromenus rugosicollis). At 14.6" there is another unidentified sound, but could be a twig break.

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering):
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16951059/Meconema_thalassinum_%281%29

Recorded the 25.vii.2011, 10:08 pm, 20ºC, in a hedgerow of a meadow in a stone oak Quercus ilex domain.
[Iberian peninsula: Catalonia: Girona province: Garrotxa: Beuda: Can Grau, 375 m][ICC map]

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]

Cicadetta sp. (before "unknown stridulation")

On three different occasions on july 2007 I could record this day-light sound, that could be either produced by a cricket, a cicada, another insect, or maybe a chick (young bird).

The recordings were made with the microphone of a digital camera, which only registers below 8kHz, and the quality is rather bat, so the discrete sounds are confused. The frequency spectra seems to be high, mainly over 6 kHz. They are now joined in one excerpt with three parts:

    a) 7.vii.2007, 30ºC, with Cicada orni in the background. Echemes last 220-280 ms, repeated at a rate of 1.7 e/s.
    b) 15.vii.2007, 29ºC, with Cicada orni and Tettigettalna argentata in the background. Echemes of 140-170 ms, repeated at a rate of 2.1.
    c) 22.vii.2007, 23ºC, with Cicada orni and Ephippiger ephippiger in the background. Echemes of 380-420 ms, repeated at a rate of 1.5.

It was recorded the three occasions in the same place (picture above), in an abandoned field with some scattered trees. That's why I think it must be the same species, which I have not heard again. It seems the sound came from the canopy of a tree, but is not sure.

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering):
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16951004/Unknown_stridulation

[Iberian peninsula: Catalonia: Girona province: Sales de Llierca: Cal Boc, 260 m][ICC map]

Chaotic picks?

Insecta:

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering):
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950631/Chaotic_picks?

This recording was made with the help of the microphone of a digital camera, which only registers below 8kHz. On the other hand I had a Bat Detector device, tuned at 20kHz, which was switched on at 1.6" (before it, it was "silence"), so the "output sound" of the Bad Detector device could then be heard and recorded.

There are two kinds of sounds; the first brings to mind the sound of dozens of workers with picks in a mine; the second is similar to the sound of scratching a match in a match-box. Unfortunately both them are in the same freqüency spectra and can't be isolated, although it could be that they were produced by the same animal species. It seems there were some individuals, so any possible common pattern is difficult to be shown up; in fact it could be a gregarious species.

I suggest it could be ants (Formicidae) or termites (Dictyoptera: Isoptera).

It was recorded near a countryside house. The sound was louder as I focused the trunk of a Celtis australis tree, covered by ivy Hedera helix, but it also could came from the ground or the branches.
The next morning I found in a branch a Theridiidae spider, Rhomphaea rostrata.

Recorded the 5th October 2008, 00:24 am, 9ºC, in a "gardened" place in a stone oak Quercus ilex forest margin.
[Iberian peninsula: Catalonia: Girona province: Garrotxa: Beuda: Can Grau][GoogleMaps]

Strange owl?

Aves


One evening (20:00 h) of January 2009, in a stone oak Quercus ilex forest in the base of a cliff, it was recorded this song with the microphone of the digital camera by Ferran Bravo. The song was repeated every 12/15 seconds (now is "artificially" duplicated). It consists of two syllabes (one ascendent, the second descendent) in a low frequency spectra, less than 1 kHz.

The landscape picture is from a similar place not far from it.
[Iberian Peninsula: Catalonia: Girona Province: Alta Garrotxa: Montagut i Oix: Cingle del Migdia: 500 m][ICC map]

It could be an anomalous song of an owl (Strix aluco, Otus scops, Bubo bubo)? Could it be a toad?

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering)
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950610/Strange_owl?

Cicadetta petryi (identified)

Recorded the 16th july 2012, 05:34 pm (unknown temperature, but hot, >20ºC, and windy) in a meadow with scattered Juniperus communis bushes. The recording has to be hardly filtered in order to take out the wind noise and other orthoptera species' songs, such as Platycleis albopunctata.

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]

In the recording there are four sequences, and the end and the beginning of other two, lasting from 4 to 10 s. Maybe there were two or more males. The phonatomes are clearly isolated and fairly easy to count, and of similar amplitude. There are 260 phonatomes/s at the beginning of the sequence, which is at a low amplitude; both the amplitude and the rate increases (to 270 ph/s) as the sequence progresses, and ends abruptly. The peak of the frequency is between 12 and 19 kHz. 

After a long echeme there is a pause and a short echeme of about 50 ms.There is a Tettigettalna argentata male singing in the background.

The figure shows the fourth sequence:

[Iberian Peninsula: Catalonia: Tarragona province: Priorat: Cornudella de Montsant: Pla del Grau Gran, 1024 m][GoogleMaps]

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering)
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950593/Cicada_barbara_lusitanica?

Cicadetta petryi (identified)

(Insecta: Hemiptera: Tibicinidae)

Recorded the 16th july 2012, 06:11 pm (unknown temperature, but hot, >20º, and windy) in a Pinus nigra forest (like this one). The recording has to be hardly filtered in order to take out the wind noise.

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]

The recording contains a whole song fragment of about 10 seconds in between the end and the beginning of other two. The spectrum of energy is from 11 to 18 kHz, with three peaks at 12.3, 14.4 and 16.6 kHz. There is a rate of about 280 phonatomes/s, but seem to be paired (140 "double phonatomes" or motifs per second). The song begins slowly, then increasing in amplitude, and ending abruptly.

[Iberian Peninsula: Catalonia: Tarragona province: Priorat: Cornudella de Montsant: Pla del Grau Gran, 1024 m][GoogleMaps]

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering)
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950313/Tibicina_quadrisignata? 

A detailed view of 0,1 seconds (from 10.0" to 10.1"), showing 14 double-pulses.

Tibicina sp. (Tibicina garricola?)

(Insecta: Hemiptera: Tibicinidae)


[Iberian Peninsula: Catalonia: Tarragona Province: Priorat area: Cornudella de Montsant: Camí d'Albarca al Pla del Grau Gran, 888 m.] [GoogleMaps]

The habitat of the recording was an open mediterranenan scrub, with some scattered Pinus halepensis trees.

 

Recorded the 16th july 2012, at unknown temperature, but hot (>20ºC), and windy, at 02: 55 pm. There is an Omocestus minutissimus male song in the background.

The song is composed of short sequences from 2 to 4 seconds.The pulse rate is about 450 to 625 phonatomes/s, but they seemed grouped in motifs of 7-8 phonatomes, with a rate of 65-80 motifs/s. The peak of energy is between 7.50 and 9 kHz.

You can hear and download the audio file here:
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950271/Tibicina_garricola_20120716 



Another recording at the same place, half an hour later (03:25 pm), it has a more continuous structure. It lasts 38 s, and also has a low amplitude prelude. The pulse rate is about the same, but increases from 470 at the beginning to 600 at the end. The peak of energy was similar, between 6.5 and 9.5 kHz:

You can hear and download the audio file here:
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950273/Tibicina_garricola

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]

Thyreonotus corsicus?

(Insecta: Orthoptera: Ensifera: Tettigoniidae)

Recorded the 5th October 2012, 20:06 h.of., 20ºC, in a stone oak Quercus ilex forest margin
[Iberian peninsula: Catalonia: Girona province: Garrotxa: Beuda: Can Grau][GoogleMaps]

Echeme of less than 4 s, with 6 syllabes of 100 to 125 ms; the closing-first one about 35-40 ms; the opening-second one of about 80-100 ms. The peak of the frequency is about 16-17 kHz.

Click here to listen (also download is possible by registering)
http://yourlisten.com/channel/content/16950260/Thyreonotus_corsicus?

[It was used a FOSTEX FR 2LE field memory recorder, mode stereo BWF48/24 bits, connected to a an unidireccional microphone RODE NTG3 and a cardioid microphone SHURE SM58]