I'm leaving for the Philippines on July 8, 2025, and will be back on July 27. This will be the last update until then, but I plan to post again once I return.

All the katydids are on a basic care schedule, so hopefully there won't be any losses while I'm away. 🙏

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Amblycorypha oblongifolia, the Oblong-winged Katydid.

I collected this group of 8 or 9 Amblycorypha oblongifolia nymphs back on 5/17/25 and collected some more on 5/26/25. I am down to 8 individuals. Unfortunately, I have no idea what happened to the few others.

All but one has reached a sexable size, as of now giving me an awesome ratio of 3 males to 4 females. The largest females measure a whopping 3.8cm or 1.5 inches in body length, including their long ovipositor, while the largest male now measures 2.5cm or 1inch in body length (as he lacks the long ovipositor). Both reach an astonishing 5.8cm or 2.3 inches in total length when extending their huge legs.

These guys have been eating very well. fresh deciduous leaves are still their favorite, though they recently devoured some orange peel.

Their enclosure has remained the same since my last update, still in a well-ventilated 12 x 7 x 8in setup. However, unfortunately, I believe they are just about outgrowing this enclosure. When I get back from the Philippines, I plan to trade either a pair or a trio, giving the others some more space. I spray down their enclosure one or twice a week and keep them at around 77°F as summer is reaching its climax.

*Amblycorypha oblongifolia* nymph female

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Pterophylla camellifolia, the common true katydid.

I collected 2 nymphs back on 5/17/25, on 6/11/25, collected 1 nymph, and on 6/30/25, collected another male nymph, just one instar behind my original pair. Unfortunately, the nymph I had collected on 6/11/25 died, most likely from parasites or other risks that come with wild-caught individuals.

My original pair is doing very well; the female has just molted, catching up to the male (I am not sure on their instar, but they are definitely close to ending their nymph stage). My largest male measures around 3.2cm or 1.25 inches in body length, while the female measures roughly 3.8cm or 1.5 inches in body length. They both reach 6.4cm or 2.5 inches when fully extended, from the tarsi of their forelegs to the tarsi of their hind legs. I can’t wait to see them reach adulthood.

I feed my Pterophylla camellifolia deciduous leaves, feeding fresh oak leaves (their favorite) regularly. These guys are not as fond of fruits and other foods, often leaving non-leafy foods alone.

I haven’t changed their setup since the last update, so they are still in a large, well-ventilated 12 x 7 x 8in setup. I spray down their enclosure once a week and keep them at around 77°F.

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Meconema thalassinum, the oak bush-cricket or the drumming katydid. Technically not a native species but a very well-established introduced species, native to Europe. I do not know of any accounts of anyone trying to raise or breed this species in captivity, maybe I am the first. This is a rather common species in my area.

I got sad news, female #1, the largest female, has died, I assume cannibalism; however, she may have died and then been subsequently scavenged. I found her on the substrate, so I pray it was a mating attempt gone wrong, as she had just matured with wings. Fortunately, I still have a pair from the trio, with a mature male who just got his wings, measuring around 2cm in body length or 3cm in total length.

The two remaining Meconema thalassinum have become more protein hungry. They readily accept both live and pre-killed fruit flies. I have also begun feeding chopped-up crickets as well as bloodworms. I’ve stopped offering seeds; however, bee pollen is still accepted and fed upon.

Their enclosure has remained the same, in a 32-oz ventilated deli cup. I spray down their enclosure regularly and keep them at around 77°F.

*Meconema thalassinum* adult #1 female (RIP)

*Meconema thalassinum* adult male (Front view)

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Myrmecophilus pergandei, the eastern ant cricket. This is an awesome native species of ant cricket found across the eastern US. They are technically kleptoparasites living among ant colonies (of the genera Lasius, Camponatus, Formica, Aphaenogaster, Crematogaster, and Tapinoma) and are believed to feed on ant secretions and debris found in ant nests.

This will, unfortunately, be the end of Myrmecophilus pergandei in this blog, as the colony has not seemed to survive. I certainly want to try raising this species again in the future using what I learned from this experience.

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Ceuthophilus maculatus, the spotted camel cricket. These guys are native to southern Canada and the eastern US, being found under decaying logs, bark, and in caves. I collected a group of around 9 of these individuals back on 5/17/25.

They are all adults or at least subadults, measuring 2-2.5cm or 0.75-1in long.

As summer has arrived, I am finding so many baby Ceuthophilus sp. outside, as camel crickets tend to lay their eggs in fall or winter, and babies hatch in late spring, I plan to turn off their heater while I am away to hopefully encourage breeding!

I keep feeding regularly and keep the setup damp.

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Scudderia furcata, the fork-tailed katydid. This is a native species of katydid, found throughout the US and Mexico. Scudderia spp. are some of the more common genera of katydids kept in the hobby, with a lot of information on their care and husbandry. I collected a group of 4 nymphs on 6/11/25, 6 more nymphs on 6/20/25, and 2 more nymphs on 6/27/25; as of now, I have a total of 12 Scudderia furcata nymphs.

They are growing very fast, with the largest individuals now measuring roughly 1.5cm or 0.6in in body length or 4cm or 1.6 inches in total length, including their stretched out legs. All the S. furcata nymphs are putting on more color, turning more green by the day.

These guys are not picky eaters, feeding on both fresh oak and maple leaves, fruits (orange peel, strawberry, apple ), and bee pollen, and some of the Vietnamese Cherish mango fruit jelly (similar to beetle jellies).

I keep them in an identical setup to the P. camellifolia, a well-ventilated 12 x 7 x 8in enclosure. I spray down their enclosure regularly and keep them at around 77°F.

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Neoxabea dipunctata, the two-spotted tree cricket. A common species of tree cricket found throughout the eastern US, from Texas to Maine. I collected a group of 3 on 6/11/25.

All three are doing well, two of which have reached a sexable size! I have 1 confirmed male and 1 confirmed female, and one unsexable individual. My sexed pair both measure 1.5cm or 0.6in in body length and 3cm or 1.2in when including their hind legs (they sleep stretched out with their abdomen in the air, making it very easy to measure them).

These guys don’t seem to be picky eaters, feeding on almost anything I feed, albeit in small quantities. Strawberry and fruit seem to be a favorite, as well as fish flakes, and lettuce. I also offer pre-killed fruit flies and some bee pollen.

I haven’t changed their setup from my last update, so they are still in a 32 oz deli container with a mesh screen lid, 1in of coco fiber substrate, some crushed leaf litter, and bark and twigs for vertical surface area. I keep them at around 76°F with an 10-hour light cycle.

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Hapithus saltator, the jumping bush cricket. A common native species of bush cricket found throughout the eastern US, from Texas to Vermont. I collected a group of 3 on 6/20/25 and collected 2 more on 6/30/25.

This group of 5 H. saltator is growing slowly, yet still small, each measuring around 0.5cm or 0.2in in body length and 0.75cm or 0.3in in total length including their extended hind legs.

They’ve been eating fruits (strawberry and apple), bee pollen, fish flakes, Vietnamese Cherish mango fruit jelly (similar to beetle jellies), and lettuce.

I got this small group in a simplistic 32-oz deli cup arrangement, a small 1.25cm or 0.5in layer of coco fiber substrate, some sphagnum moss, plenty of twigs and sticks for them to climb on, and a well-ventilated lid. I keep a small colony of springtails in the substrate to keep everything mold-free. I spray down regularly to keep a constant semi-humid environment and keep them under a bright grow light for around 10 hours a day, at 75-76°F.

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Phaneroptera nana, the Mediterranean katydid. Unfortunately, not a native species, but an introduced one (kind of a recurring theme among the species I keep). I collected 7 individuals on 6/15/25.

A few of the P. nana are barely sexable, with visible wing buds, tiny ovipositors on a couple of individuals, and small cerci on others. As of now, the largest measure a little under 1.5cm in body length and up to 4cm in total length, with their legs fully extended. They have a very similar build and body shape to my young Scudderia furcata nymphs.

I feed all the same foods that I do with the Scudderia furcata nymphs, lettuces, deciduous leaves(fresh maple and oak), fruits (orange peel, strawberry, and apple), as well as fish flakes.

I’ve recently upgraded this group to a large, well-ventilated 12 x 7 x 8in setup, the same setup that I keep the majority of my other katydids in (check out my first blog post for photos on what one of the setups looks like). I got a colony of springtails to clean up and feed on detritus in the substrate. I spray down their enclosure regularly and keep them at around 77°F.

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A new addition to my ever-growing collection is another species of native tree cricket, Oecanthus sp. (maybe O. exclamationis), a species of common tree cricket. I collected 5 small specimens on 6/30/25.

These guys are tiny, measuring around 0.8cm in body length and approximately 1.2cm in total length, including their hind legs.

I assume they have a similar diet to my N. dipunctata. I got them feeding on the Vietnamese Cherish mango fruit jelly (similar to beetle jellies), fish flake, bee pollen, and lettuce.

I got this small group in a 32-oz deli cup setup, a small 1.25cm or 0.5in layer of coco fiber substrate, some sphagnum moss, plenty of twigs and sticks for them to climb on, and a well-ventilated lid. I keep a small colony of springtails in the substrate to keep everything mold-free. I spray down regularly to keep a constant semi-humid environment and keep them under a bright grow light for around 10 hours a day, at 75-77°F.

I can’t wait to see them mature!

*Oecanthus sp.* nymph (feeding on some fruit jelly)

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My final addition to my native orthopteran collection is a colony of Neonemobius palustris, the sphagnum or marsh ground cricket. A common species of small ground cricket endemic to the Northeastern US and parts of Southeastern Canada. I collected a group of 5 N. palustris back on 6/30/25.

The group consists of mixed individuals, a couple of small nymphs around 0.5cm or 0.2in long, and a few mature nymphs, a little under 1cm or 0.39in long. Adult N. palustris max out at around 0.9-1cm or 0.4in long.

This small species of Gryllid is a generalist feeding on all sorts of organic matter. I feed them a variety of foods, such as fish flakes, apple slices, Vietnamese Cherish mango fruit jelly (similar to beetle jellies), bee pollen, and deciduous leaves.

As they aren’t arboreal like my other katydids and will stay super small, I can afford to keep them in a 6 x 5 x 3in container. As N. palustris lives among sphagnum moss, I cover around half of the enclosure in a layer of sphagnum moss above coco fiber substrate, with plenty of leaf litter, twigs, and some small bark flats as hides. I keep them with a small colony of white springtails that feed on detritus and molds that may build up. I keep them at around 75-77°F, spray the enclosure regularly, keeping a semi-humid environment, and at the windowsill where they get around 12 hours of indirect sunlight.

NY native Orthoptera breeding projects post #5

NY native Orthoptera breeding projects post #4