Tricky terminology

Here's a recent press release about different calls of 'katydids':

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-03/uom-fkp031108.php

I found the pun on 'cool' and 'hot' fun though a little confusing at first.

Actually the whole article is full of games theory vagueness. For example they mention that the calls are flexible. But it is not the males themselves that are adjusting the call, diffrent males have different calls depending on when they were maturing, as far as I can tell. So the females could use it as an indicator (that one's got a fast call so it must be a summer maturer).

And of course the 'force' terminology at the end really refers to a search for the driver of the evolutionary change :P. Ah Jargon - this stuffs sneaky because it seems to mean something evocative. makes for great telling but lots of misconceptions...


Speaking of Katydids, here's some photos that Rod Taylor took in Thredbo lats week:

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