Silent nights...

Narrow-winged Tree Cricket, Oecanthus niveus.

I photographed this female tree cricket a few days back, before our weather took a turn for the frostier. Her potential suitors were common in the shrubbery around here, and their songs were part of the great insect symphony. Cold weather has done in just about all of the Orthopteran musicians, and the nights will now be much quieter for some time to come.

The last holdouts of the cricket crowd will be Allard's, Carolina, and Striped Ground Crickets, the latter two of which I heard today, despite a high temperature of only 50 degrees or so. Listen for these three in lawns, sheltered areas of gardens and mulch beds, and other protected sites.