A sound of spring, bug song

Is spring happening where you are? And what phenomena mark the season where you are in Japan? For me, the first clue after 春一番 haru ichiban, the first wind of spring, is bug song.

A kamikirimushi, 髪切虫 on my veranda - bush crickets are harder to capture in photos

This evening when I took a breather on my apartment’s veranda after dark, I was surprised by an early spring serenade, the whirring of bug song. Along with the cherry blossoms, the waking of the insects is a sign that spring is truly here. I hear three distinct varieties, some low, and some high, emanating from the brush along the canal near my house.

The bugs started up in cherry blossom season, but quieted down during the rain. They’ve woken up in earnest this evening. These are Euconocephalus thunbergi, a kind of bush cricket called クビキリキズ kubikirikizu in Japanese. They whirr in the grass near the canal around my house. These folks are elusive - it’s hard to catch a glimpse unless they’re attracted to lights, but you can hear them buzzing away from April to May.

Last summer, I shared with you my insights into bug identification with a post, What is that bug?!

Are you seeing and hearing insects near you? Too early in some parts of Japan? Tell us about them!