[NetBehaviour] an interesting insect* recording

Alan Sondheim sondheim at panix.com
Wed Aug 8 03:34:25 CEST 2007




an interesting insect* recording


http://www.asondheim.org/cricket1.mp3
http://www.asondheim.org/cricket2.mp3

*might be amphibian but very doubtful

unlike most crickets, cicadas, grasshoppers, these sound continuously, on-
ly pausing with what seems like exhaustion. the sound is intensely direc-
tional; turn 90 degrees and it disappears, even though we were within a
few feet of the creature (which remained hidden in the bushes). now here
we are with the semblance of a neuron; there are threshold firings that
one might consider digital (sound on / sound off) but there's also a fine
structure that i assume goes well into the ultrasonics, conveying coded
information that's analogically based. this is similar to 'counting chirps
to determine temperature; in this case, there are no chirp bursts and
whatever's going on is invisible - and perhaps invisible to the insect
that hears and responds, the insect that autonomically decodes and acts
accordingly.

again, any information you might have would be greatly appreciated. the
sounds were recorded at ground level (dangling mono microphone) early
night in aurora, colorado, early august.




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