KATYDIDS, GREEN OR LONG-HORNED GRASS- 
HOPPERS, SHIELD-BACKED GRASSHOPPERS, AND 
CAVE-CRICKETS— Family TETTIGONIIDAE. 
The members of this family, known more generally hitherto as 
Locustidae or Locustarians, are characterized by the possession of 
extremely long, finely tapering antennae, four-jointed tarsi with- 
out pads between the claws, a compressed, blade-like ovipositor, 
organs of hearing situated on the front tibiae, and wing-covers 
with the larger part of their surface sloping at the side of the body. 
The wing-covers of the male are modified to form a sounding- 
board for the stridulating apparatus. This is located near the 
base of the wing-cover and consists of a transverse ridge bearing a 
series of teeth which act upon a stiffened edge on the other wing- 
cover, causing both to vibrate and produce a scraping sound. 
Their stridulatory powers have placed them in the front rank of 
insect musicians, on a plane with the Crickets; and their per- 
formances have long attracted attention, that of our arboreal 
"Katydid" being especially noteworthy. These habits are 
treated more at length under the headings of the various species. 
Their coloring parallels that of the Crickets: those species 
which live on the ground, hiding themselves among fallen leaves, 
beneath stones, and in holes, present the dull tints of their sur- 
roundings; while those living among the verdure of the fields, in 
grass and herbage generally, in the green leafage of bushes and 
trees, are with few exceptions of a similar grass- or leaf-green hue. 
These vary specifically in tint, with more of yellowish or bluish, in 
some instances exhibiting also a distinct pale-brown phase, and 
very rarely a striking pink variation. 
Protected by their color and in some cases by very retiring hab- 
its, many more kinds live about us than we realize. While some 
are as active both in movement and in song by day as by night, 
others are exclusively nocturnal, revealing themselves to our eyes 
and ears only after the glare and noise of daylight have ceased. 
They are mainly herbivorous in diet, but animal substances do 
not come amiss to them and are devoured greedily by some species. 
Though the aggregate amount of vegetation consumed by these 
insects is unquestionably very great, their depredations pass 
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