Square Legged Camel Cricket from Oregon

Subject:  Id bug
Geographic location of the bug:  Seaside oregon
Date: 07/30/2021
Time: 05:22 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  What kind of bug is this
How you want your letter signed:  Billl

Square Legged Camel Cricket

Dear Billl,
Originally we thought this Orthopteran was a Shieldback Katydid, but we now believe it to be a Square Legged Camel Cricket, Tropidischia xanthostoma, which is pictured on BugGuide.  According to BugGuide:  “Dark color and long slender legs are characteristic” and it is found “Near Pacific Coast from California to British Columbia.”  According to Insect Identification for the Casual Observer:  “Square-legged Cricket Camels have normal-sized bodies but extraordinarily long legs. The shape of the legs, especially visible at the joints, is squared, not round like one might expect. These edges have small ridges or teeth that help accentuate the corners. When they walk, they resemble spiders, but it can also hop because it is a cricket. Square-legged Cricket Camels do not bite, nor do they sting. Females have a curved, spine-like ovipositor that is used to bury eggs. It is sometimes mistaken for a thick stinger, but it is harmless.  This species is a West Coast native that can be found near water or further inland. Its varied diet of insects, detritus, vegetation, fungi, and even feces make it easy to find a meal.”

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