The genus Anaxipha has at least 13 North American species, eight of which are described here. Ten species fall into these three species groups: exigua group (exigua Say, scia Hebard and n. spp. thomasi, tinnulacita, tinnulenta, and tinnula); delicatula group (delicatula Scudder and vernalis n. sp.); litarena group (litarena Fulton and rosamacula n.sp.). The remaining three (imitator Saussure, fultoni n.sp., and calusa n.sp.) have no close relatives among the other species. Most new species were initially distinguished by their calling songs, and in most cases sympatric populations proved cleanly separable by features of male genitalia and tooth-counts of stridulatory files. Species groups were based mostly on comparisons of male genital structures and the results of DNA barcoding. Species are here characterized not only by their songs and morphology, but also by geographical, ecological, and seasonal distributions.

At a given temperature the pulse rate (PR) of the male's calling song is a key aid to identification. PR at 25°C has a narrow range of variation within a species and among the 13 species its mean value varies from 5 to 79 p/s. As in other crickets, pulse rates plotted as a function of temperature have a positive, linear trendline. When trendlines for 11 Anaxipha species are extrapolated downward, the temperature at ŷ=0 p/s is 2.7+2.2 (mean±SD) — i.e., the lines tend to converge at about 3°C. This makes possible a simple formula for estimating the PR at 25°C from any Anaxipha calling song recorded at any temperature. Other aids to identifying species from their calling songs are the duration and regularity of breaks between pulse sequences and the relationship between PR and carrier frequency (CF). When CF is plotted as a function of PR, the relationship deviates noticeably from linear only in vernalis.

We propose that in Anaxipha spp., as well as in six other genera in four gryllid subfamilies, the synchrony of tooth impacts and the fundamental vibrations of the CF is maintained by the scraper moving continuously over evenly spaced file teeth — rather than by the much-studied (and well-established) catch-and-release mechanism of Gryllus spp. Our proposal is based on the high rates of change in CF with temperature and on differences in the teeth of the stridulatory files. The PR at 25°C of each of the 13 species is remarkable in the degree to which it predicts the mean values of these five characters: file tooth number, tooth density, file length, pulse duration, and pulse duty cycle (Fig. 17).

A neotype is designated for Gryllus pulicaria Burmeister (1838), the type species of the genus Anaxipha. With the e-version of this paper, extensive Supplementary Materials provide permanent access to data sets that are basic to our conclusions. These materials include detailed records of the specimens examined and of the more than 1300 recorded songs that were analyzed. Digitized versions of more than 450 of the recordings are archived in Cornell's Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds.

This paper examines the relationships between male body size, spermatophore size, and number of sperm per spermatophore, in four cricket species: Teleogryllus commodus, Acheta domesticus, Gryllus bimaculatus, and Gryllus assimilis. Within each species, individuals varied considerably in all three characters measured, and generally, spermatophore size, number of sperm, and body size were all correlated; i.e., ampulla diameter and sperm number per spermatophore significantly increased with body mass (p < 0.001) according to a linear regression function. Interspecific investigations found considerable differences between species: G. assimilis had the largest mean male body mass and length, largest ampullas, and highest numbers of spermatozoa per spermatophore, whilst A. domesticus had a small body mass and length, the smallest ampullas, and lowest sperm numbers. Regression analyses of all four cricket species revealed similar results as intraspecific regression computations. Hence, both intra- and interspecifically, larger males produce larger spermatophores containing more sperm, than do smaller males. These results differ from bush crickets (Tettigoniidae), where larger male body size does not necessarily correlate with larger ampullas and more sperm. Possibly male bush crickets have evolved to invest a higher proportion of their resources in the size of the nuptial gift, as opposed to number of spermatozoa.

Development affects many components of life history and fitness, including body size. The present study examined the influence of developmental pattern, specifically the number of nymphal instars, on body size (pronotum length) in the praying mantid Stagmomantis limbata Hahn. Mantids were reared in the laboratory from hatching, on standardized diet, to examine variation in instar number. These lab data were then used to assess developmental patterns forfield-collected female nymphs. Laboratoryreared males and females varied in number of instars. Most females required 6 nymphal instars to reach adulthood (64%), whereas 36% underwent 7 instars. Seven-instar females reached the 4^th, 5 ^th, and 6^th instars faster than six-instar females, but had shorter pronota than the six-instar females at each of these stages. Seven-instar females were longer than six-instar females at adulthood. Interestingly, the total developmental period from hatching to adulthood was similar for lab-reared seven-instar and six-instar females. In the lab, most males (91%) underwent 6 instars, with the remaining 9% following a five-instar pattern. By the 4^th instar, differences between the sexes began to appear. From the 4^th instar onwards, females typically took less time than males to reach each instar. From the 5^th instar onwards, females were longer than the males, and were longer as adults. Variation in developmental pattern (number of instars) was evident among siblings from the same ootheca; such intra-clutch variability in number of instars may be a bet-hedging strategy by ovipositing females in a variable environment. The laboratory data allowed for the detection of six-instar and seven-instar patterns among the field-collected females. The field-collected data suggest that females undergoing 6 nymphal instars reach adulthood later in the season, and at smaller body size, than seven-instar females.

Concise characterization of allergy is presented and allergy to insects is discussed. Three kinds of allergy to locusts and grasshoppers are reviewed: 1) occupational allergy, i.e, allergy of personnel working with rearing and breeding these insects; 2) allergic reactions to acridid aggregations in the field; and 3) food allergy. Occupational allergy is the major subject, detailing the results of several relevant studies. Some inconsistent issues regarding reports on field allergy are illuminated and anaphylactic reaction to consumption of locusts/grasshoppers is discussed. Prevention and treatments of allergy to locusts and grasshoppers are described. Approximate molecular masses of locust allergens, as found in three studies, are summarized. A major allergen is the peritrophic membrane (today often termed peritrophic matrix or peritrophic envelope) which is secreted by the gut and excreted as a wrapping around the feces. It is concluded that the molecular structure of locust and grasshopper allergens should be revealed for full characterization.

Bucrates weissmani n.sp. is known from four localities in southern Arizona. It is smaller and more slender than the other four species of Bucrates, making it superficially similar to the Central American copiphorine Caulopsis cuspidata, but more fundamental features refute the notion that it belongs in Caulopsis rather than Bucrates. Four other species of Bucrates are known. Two of these, capitatus (De Geer) and clausus (Scudder), occur in sympatry in Central America and tropical South America; lanista Rehn is known only from southern Brazil; and malivolans (Scudder) is restricted to the southeastern United States. All are easily distinguished morphologically and, for the three for which the songs are known, by their songs. Unlike the two other species of Bucrates for which the habitat is known, B. weissmani occurs on altitudinal islands at the edge of a desert. The calling song of B. weissmani resembles that of numerous species of Neoconocephalus, whereas the songs of B. malivolans and B. capitatus, resemble each other more than either song resembles that of B. weissmani.