Short-winged Conehead
Taxonomy
Orthoptera » Ensifera » Tettigonioidea » Tettigoniidae » Concephalinae » Conocephalus dorsalis
Status
UK
Distribution Map
Colours show the year of the last record -
| up to 1987 | 1988-97 | 1998 up to present |
Only Recording Scheme datasets are included. Other datasets on the Gateway may hold additional information.
Recordings
Description
Small, green bush cricket with a brown stripe along the back and brown wings. Unlike the Long-winged Conehead, this species usually has short wings that do not reach the end of the body.
Size
11-18 mm
Wings
Normally short-winged (brachypterous). There is a macropterous form (f. burri Ebner) with both pairs of wings fully developed, which is mainly found in hot summers.
Stridulation
TWO alternating sounds are characteristic: a chuffing noise similar to Long-winged Conehead but even quieter, and a rapid ticking noise, described as sounding like a fishing reel, or the old knife grinders wheel.
Food
Omnivorous, but feeds mainly on seed heads, buds and flowers of grasses, rushes and sedges.
Habitat
Two distinct habitats: coastally on saltmarshes and sand dunes, particularly associated with maritime rushes and grasses; inland on lowland bogs, fens, reedbeds, river floodplains and by lakes and pools. New populations in SW Scotland discovered in 2016 are on Sea Clubrush (Bolboschoenus maritimus) and it is worth checking stands of this plant.
Phenology
Nymphs emerge in May and June. Adults present from July and August until mid-October.