Order: Orthoptera
Family: Tettigoniidae
Genus: Orchelimum
Orchelimum pulchellum is distributed throughout the Altantic Coastal Plain and lowland areas of the Piedmont, extending further westward into Louisiana in the south (2). It is one of the most colorful of our katydids and easily distinguished by its unique combination of colors and light-blue eyes. This specimen was found perched high on some tall grass near a pond in the Sarah P. Duke Gardens of the Duke University campus.
Orchelimum pulchellum – Handsome Meadow Katydid
Orchelimum pulchellum – Close up dorsal view of pronotum and characteristic light blue eyes
Orchelimum pulchellum – Close up of the head and mouthparts
Orchelimum pulchellum – Close up of the antennae and head
Orchelimum pulchellum – Rubbing the antennae
Orchelimum pulchellum on Bugguide.net
Orchelimum pulchellum information and recordings on UFL.edu
Sources
(1) Triplehorn, C.A. and N.F. Johnson, Borror and Delong’s Introduction to the Study of Insects, 7th ed., (2005), Thomson Brooks/Cole.
(2) Rehn, J.A.G. and M. Hebard, Studies in American Tettigoniidae. IV. A synopsis of the species of the genus Orchelimum. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, vol. 41,(1915), pp. 11-83.
(2) Rehn, J.A.G. and M. Hebard, Studies in American Tettigoniidae. IV. A synopsis of the species of the genus Orchelimum. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, vol. 41,(1915), pp. 11-83.
