Commercial-cricket-breeding
Guides
Gryllus assimilis
Jamaican field cricket, silent cricket (misnomer)
Gryllus assimilis, the Jamaican field cricket, is a field cricket species native to the West Indies, southern United States, Mexico, and parts of South America. It is distinguished from similar species primarily by its song: a short, pulsed chirp with rapid pulse rate and brief intervals between pulses, creating a nearly continuous sound. Since 2010, it has become widely bred as a feeder insect for the pet industry throughout North America and Europe, largely replacing the house cricket (Acheta domesticus) after that species was devastated by cricket paralysis virus. The species is notable for its immunity to this virus, its relatively docile behavior compared to some other Gryllus species used in the pet trade, and its status as a USDA-approved native species for commercial sale in the United States.