Pest Identification: Crickets

Crickets are small-to-medium-sized insects, ranging from 0.12 to 2 inches (3-50 mm), with species like bull crickets being the largest at about 2 inches (5 cm). They have spherical heads with long antennae, compound eyes, and three simple eyes on their forehead. Their bodies consist of two segments – thorax and abdomen – with wings that vary among species. Crickets come in shades of gray, brown, yellow, and green, and are found worldwide except at latitudes higher than about 55° North and South. They live in various habitats, including tree canopies, grasses, and burrows. Omnivorous by nature, their diet includes aphids, grasses, flowers, fruits, larvae, leaves, and seeds. Crickets chirp for reasons like warding off males, attracting mates, and showing dominance. They can bite humans when disturbed. While crickets and grasshoppers are close cousins, a key difference is how they produce sound – crickets do so by rubbing their wings together, while grasshoppers chirp by rubbing hind legs against wings. Crickets are mostly nocturnal, hiding during the day, and some can generate a chirping noise known as a “song.” Males can be aggressive, chirping to protect territory, and only they can produce the chirping sound using a scraper on their wings. They have tympana or hearing structures on their forelegs and powerful jaws. Crickets have strong hind legs for leaping and are known for their courtship rituals and mating behaviors. Females lay eggs below the soil or in plant stems using an ovipositor, and some species feed their larvae regularly after hatching.