What bush crickets are telling researchers via their unique calls

By Ozayr Patel, Digital Editor

Bush crickets – or katydids, as they are also known – are fascinating creatures. They belong in the same order of insects as grasshoppers and crickets and are among the many species that communicate acoustically.

Male bush crickets are prolific callers – and each species has its own call to advertise their fitness to females. They call in different frequency bands and for different lengths of time, so that they can make themselves heard to the right potential mate.

In South Africa, there are about 169 species of bush crickets. Of these, about 123 have an

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