THE SONGS OF THE GRASSHOPPERS. . 115 
the Green or Long-horned Grasshoppers; to the third and 
fourth, certain kinds of Short-horned or Jumping Grasshop- 
pers. The sounds produced by the different groups vary in 
pitch, those of the crickets being shrillest and the others 
following in the order just given. With but few exceptions 
the males alone sing. 
‘The notes of the Cricket—called by the French “cri cri” 
on account of its song—may be heard near Boston* from the 
middle of June until November; further north they do not 
appear until much later in the season. Their note is errr, 
and the rapidity with which it is uttered varies even in the 
same strain; sometimes it is as slow as two notes a second, 
at others it is twice as rapid. The note is sharp and shrill, 
and appears to be pitched at E natural, two octaves above 
middle C. Sometimes two choirs of these insects may be 
heard at once, the individuals of each choir chirping simul- 
taneously, but one choir more rapidly than the other ; most 
of the time this produces a sort of discord, but, as they 
occasionally harmonize, one hears cycles of accordance and 
discordance, often of remarkable uniformity and duration. 
The Spotted-cricket (Nemobius vittatus) appears simulta- 
neously with the Black-cricket ( Gryllus niger). The chirping 
of the two insects is very similar, but that of the former may 
be better expressed by r-r-r-u, pronounced as though it were 
a French word. The note is trilled forcibly, and lasts a vari- 
able length of time. One of these insects was once observed 
while singing to its mate. At first the song was mild and 
frequently broken ; afterwards it grew impetuous, forcible, 
and more prolonged ; then it decreased in volume and extent 
until it became quite soft and feeble. At this point the male 
began to approach the female, uttering a series of twittering 
chirps; the female ran away, and the male, after a short 
chase, returned to his old haunt, singing with the same 
vigor but with frequent pauses; at last, finding all persua- 
sion unavailing he brought his serenade to a close. 

* All my illustrations are drawn from New England insects. 
