A couple from the Question Book pt. 1

A few from the question book:

Neotibicin canicularis - Dogday Cicada

What is the adjective for the Cicada's noise making?

Male Cicadas produce their loud songs by quickly contracting and releasing their tymbals (ribbed membranes in the last segment of the thorax) producing incredibly loud sounds. Their abdomens are mostly hollow and act as resonators like the body of a drum or the back plate on a banjo which amplifies the sound. The act of flexing and releasing this membrane over the hollow abdomens is called buckling. The Cicadas can change the tone slightly by leaning towards or away from the substrate.

This is not the same as how Crickets make their song. Crickets will rub two corrugrated body parts against each other like a leg against a wing or wing against a wing producing their various songs. This is known as stridulation.

Mantis religiosa - Praying Mantis

Can you, and if so, how do you ID praying mantis based on sex?

Female Praying Mantis' are larger and heavier than the males which acutally makes it more difficult for them to fly where as the males are more agile. The females antennae and eyes tend to be smaller. Most of these traits are difficult to use as ID features in the field as they may require two different sexes to compare and contrast between them.

What is a swim bladder? Who has a swim bladder? Have they ever been used in any sort of traditional craft?

A swim bladder are two small sacs of gas, usually oxygen, in the body of bony Fish (but not cartilagenous Fish like Sharks) that helps them to remain at a consistent depth within the water without having to expend too much energy in that process. It can be imagined as similar to a ballast in a large boat., filling and emptying to maintain the desired buoyancy. It is located dorsally in the fish, near the back, and therefore gives the fish lateral stability in the water. The sacs walls are flexible and fill or empty by different means depending on the species of fish and type of swim bladder they have.

Swim bladders, also called a maw, have been used for food in some parts of the world, often sold dry, and prepared in soups. They have also been used as an early alternative to the modern condom.

Eupatorium perfoliatum - Boneset

What is the new name for the Eupatorium genus (specifically Bonesets)?

While Bonesets have remained within the Eupatorium genus, their kith of the damp wet places, Joe-Pye Weeds, have moved to a new genus, Eutrochium.

Eupatorium perfoliatum is the most common Boneset species in Southern Ontario, where as Eutrochium maculata, Spotted Joe-Pye Weed is the most common Joe-Pye here. Other habitat plant associates with Boneset and Joe-Pye are Jewelweed, Coltsfoot, Water Hemlock, and Eastern White Cedar.

Both Bonest and Joe-Pye are within the Asteraceae/Composite family group along side Ironweeds, Dandelions, Sunflowers and Daisies. The Eupatoriums were divided into smaller genera in based on different genetic characteristics and since this reclassification is due to ongoing research, there will likely be some more switches and shifts in the names and groups in the future. Aside from the genetic differences, there are a couple of substantial visible distinctions between the two. Eutrochiums have purple flowers and mostly whorled leaves, Eupatoriums have white flowers and mostly opposite branching leaves.