Facts on the Cricket Insect

Crickets are found throughout the U.S.

In the autumn when the weather begins to cool, a chorus of cricket songs fills the night air. These are the songs of male crickets trying to attract a female. The beauty of a cricket's song isn't apparent to everyone, but in some cultures singing crickets are kept as pets.

Types of Crickets

There are three types of crickets commonly found in the U.S. Field crickets are black or dark brown and measure from 1/2 inch to just over an inch long. House crickets look a lot like field crickets but are yellowish-brown and only about 3/4 inch long; they have three dark bands across the head and the upper part of the thorax. Cave crickets, also called camel crickets, are wingless and have longer antennae and hind legs. The camel cricket's back is arched, giving it a hump-backed appearance.

Chirping

A male cricket chirps by scraping his wings against each other. On one wing he has a series of ridges called a file, and on the other he has one sharp ridge called a scraper. The tone of the chirp is determined by wing structure and the distance between the ridges on the file. The frequency of chirps is related to the temperature. If you count the number of chirps in 15 seconds and add 37, you get the approximate temperature in degrees Fahrenheit.

The Importance of Songs

All crickets have ears located below the bend in their front legs. The ears allow crickets to hear chirps, and by changing the direction he is facing a cricket can also tell what direction a chirp is coming from.

Male crickets communicate through their songs. Female crickets choose a mate according to the tone and vigor of his song. The loud, steady chirps heard at night are the male's mating song. When a female is nearby he produces a softer, quicker chirp, Crickets also have a chirp to define their territory and an alarm chirp to warn others of danger.

Habitat and Damage

Crickets live in cool, damp, dark places such as caves, basements, under rocks and in plumbing. They hide in cracks and crevices during the day and come out at night to feed. Outdoor crickets feed on garden plants and are normally just a nuisance, but they damage plants when the population is high. Indoor crickets damage fabrics and carpeting.

Life Cycle

Adult female crickets are easy to recognize. They have a long, straight structure extending from the end of their body, called an ovipositor. The ovipositor is used to deposit eggs. They also have two small appendages near the ovipositor, called cerci. These are used during mating.

Female crickets deposit their eggs in moist sand or soil in autumn, and they hatch in 15 to 25 days. When newly hatched insects look similar to adults except in size, they are called nymphs. Cricket nymphs are wingless, and develop into adults in about 12 weeks. Adult crickets die in winter.

References

• AgriLIFE Extension: Field Cricket
• Great Plains Nature Center: Field Cricket
• Arkive: Field Cricket