Crickets

Guides

Acheta
house crickets, field crickets
Acheta is a genus of field crickets (Gryllidae) containing approximately 17 described species, with Acheta domesticus (house cricket) being the most widely known and economically significant. The genus is distributed across the Palaearctic realm and North America, with A. domesticus achieving cosmopolitan distribution through human activity. Species in this genus are characterized by their stridulatory communication, with males producing species-specific calling songs to attract females. The house cricket serves as a major source of animal feed, fish bait, and increasingly as human food, though its cultivation faces challenges from Acheta domesticus Densovirus (AdDNV).
crickets Gryllidae stridulation phonotaxis commercial-insect-farming alternative-protein densovirus animal-feed entomophagy
Cnemotettix
Silk-spinning Crickets
Cnemotettix is a genus of crickets in the family Anostostomatidae, commonly known as silk-spinning crickets. The genus was established by Caudell in 1916 and contains five described species, all named by Rentz & Weissman in 1973 except for the type species C. pulvillifer. These insects are characterized by their ability to produce silk, an unusual trait among crickets. The genus is found in western North America, with records from Mexico and California.
Orthoptera Anostostomatidae crickets silk-production
Gryllidea
crickets
Gryllidea is an infraorder within the suborder Ensifera comprising crickets and their relatives. The group contains two superfamilies—Grylloidea (true crickets, tree crickets, scaly crickets, and allies) and Gryllotalpoidea (mole crickets and ant crickets)—encompassing more than 6,000 described species globally. Members are characterized by acoustic communication through stridulation, with males producing species-specific songs to attract mates. The infraorder originated in the Triassic period approximately 250–200 million years ago and represents the third most diverse group within Orthoptera.
crickets Orthoptera Ensifera acoustic-communication stridulation mole-crickets ant-crickets myrmecophily bioacoustics edible-insects agricultural-pest household-pest Triassic-origin hemimetabolous-development kleptoparasitism chemical-mimicry autotomy thigmotaxis invasive-species Diestrammena-asynamora Acheta-domesticus Gryllodes-sigillatus Gryllus-firmus Paragordius-varius host-parasite-interactions mitochondrial-genomics positive-selection cox1 Nearctic-fauna Yunnan-biodiversity urban-ecology soil-ecosystem-engineering decomposer food-security alternative-protein
Hapithinae
Hapithinae is a subfamily of crickets within the family Gryllidae, established by Gorochov in 1986. The group contains small, often colorful crickets, including the well-documented genus Phyllopalpus. Members are characterized by arboreal habits, occupying foliage and shrubs rather than ground habitats. The subfamily is primarily distributed in the Americas, with some species showing northward range expansion in recent decades.
crickets Gryllidae arboreal North-America
Nomotettix cristatus
crested pygmy grasshopper, crested grouse locust, northern crested grouse locust
Nomotettix cristatus is a small pygmy grasshopper in the family Tetrigidae, commonly known as the crested pygmy grasshopper or crested grouse locust. It is one of approximately 35 Nearctic species of Tetrigidae. The species exhibits three recognized subspecies with distinct geographic distributions across North America. Like other members of its family, it is characterized by an elongated pronotum that extends over the abdomen, a trait distinguishing pygmy grasshoppers from typical grasshoppers in Acrididae.
pygmy-grasshopper groundhopper Tetrigidae Nearctic moist-habitat pronotum cristate North-America leaf-litter aquatic-margin Orthoptera Caelifera jumping-insect small-grasshopper crested-pronotum subspecies-variation Alberta Connecticut Florida Georgia Illinois lake-shore pond-edge stream-margin ground-dwelling Scudder-1862 Batrachidea-cristata Nomotettix-cristatus-cristatus Nomotettix-cristatus-compressus Nomotettix-cristatus-floridanus Tetriginae Acrididea Tetrigoidea Hexapoda Pterygota insect arthropod animal eukaryote metazoa animalia arthropoda insecta nomotettix cristatus crested pygmy grasshopper grouse-locust northern-crested-grouse-locust crested-grouse-locust crested-pygmy-grasshopper iNaturalist GBIF Catalogue-of-Life NCBI-Taxonomy Wikipedia Skejo Tumbrinck Devriese Hochkirch Morse-1895 Hancock-1902 Scudder-1863 Batrachidea cristata compressus floridanus Nearctic-region 35-species 2000-species 230-million-years dinosaur-contemporaries water-dependent-lifecycle Peruća-lake Croatia Balkans Europe systematics taxonomy faunistics natural-history biodiversity conservation endangered imperiled ZooKeys research amateur-naturalist citizen-science observation 53-observations rare neglected-diversity tropics Madagascar Australia New-Guinea Borneo Brazil Atlantic-Forest leaf-like-morphology spines warts undulations horns bizarre grotesque Hancock-1907 Genera-Insectorum Acididae pronotal-projection Holocerus Notocerus Holocerus-lucifer Holocerus-devriesei Notocerus-formidabilis Metopomystrum-muriciense Ophiotettix-pulcherrima Paraselina-brunneri Selivinga-tribulata Criotettix-bispinosus Tetrix-subulata Tettigidea-lateralis Tetrix-undulata Tetrix-tenuicornis Paratettix-meridionalis Paratettix-mexicanus Tetrix-depressa Tetrix-arenosa Tetrix-bipunctata Tetrix-japonica Paratettix-aztecus Hyperyboella-orphania Scelimena-producta Eurymorphopus-bolivariensis Discotettix-belzebuth Tetrix-ceperoi Tetrix-transsylvanica Arulenus Rhacocleis-buchichii Barbitistes-kaltenbachi Adžić Deranja Pavlović Fran-Rebrina Ivan-Budinski Vrlika HPM Hrvatski-Prirodoslovni-Muzej Zagreb Kitonić Miko Franjević Medak Mathieu Silva Pereira De-Domenico Sperber Connors Hendriksen Lambert Chong McMaster Monaghan Rentz Richter Rose Telnov Barclay Pauwels Entomological-Society-of-Latvia Riga Latvia Wallacea Volume-III biogeography nature-conservation Trinity-Audio guest-blog Josip-Skejo Orthoptera-of-Croatia Balkan-endemic endemic-species natural-history-museum museum-collections field-research career-determination serendipitous-discovery new-species systematic-research understudied-group regular-publishing 2021 2017 2020 2014 2016 2013 2012 2011 primary-school high-school biology-student snakes Uropeltidae Scolecophidia shield-tailed-snakes blind-snakes grasshoppers crickets Croatian-endemic first-encounter water-dependency lifecycle leading-European-orthopterists rare-species new-Arulenus-species understudied publishing Tetrigidae-research encyclopedia Elsevier digital-taxonomy open-access innovations journal growth trending social-media Flickr unidentified-rare-pygmy-grasshoppers students amateurs new-records not-rare Tribulation-helmed-groundhopper Kuranda Tully-Range Redlynch Kingfisher-park Speewah selected-awesome-places selected-amazing-taxa rainforests humid-forests extremely-rare weird-looking largest most-colourful ZooKeys-studies photographs identified-to-species-level variability pronotal-projection-morphology holotype Maroantsentra Antongil-Bay Tamatave Andasibe Vohimana Ranomafana Analamazaotra Traveler's-Palm Ravenala-madagascariensis natural-habitat skilful-flier flight large-back-spines Formidable-Pygmy-Grasshopper Sava-region true-colours small interesting Pygmy-unicorns Southern-America Murici description male-holotype head sternum frontal-view dorsal-view lateral-view sternomentum scale-bars Giraffehoppers unique antennal-shape face-coloration visual-animals courtship mating-pair Yapen-Island Cenderawasih-Bay W-New-Guinea young-entomologists decision study-pygmy-grasshoppers direction primary-and-high-school compare-data first-idea familiar-animals field order-Orthoptera friend fellow-student first-systematic-research two-Croatian-endemic-species first-years 2011-2012 never-saw single-pygmy-grasshopper BIOM Sinj Tetrigidae-location around-water first-time-ever lifecycle-water-dependent researching contacting Hendrik-Devriese Axel-Hochkirch Josef-Tumbrinck Croatian-Natural-History-Museum Skejo-et-al.-2014 Skejo-&-Caballero-2016 regularly-publishing Adžić-et-al.-2021 Endangered-Pygmy-Grasshoppers Encyclopaedia-of-Conservation Mathieu-et-al.-2021 ZooKeys-1042 Silva-et-al.-2017 comments recent-changes Metopomystrum Cleostratini Miriatrini ZooKeys-702 Skejo-et-al.-2020 online-social-media Anaselina Paraselina Selivinga rare-Australian-pygmy-grasshoppers ZooKeys-948 Malagasy-devils north south ZooKeys-957 Tumbrinck-&-Skejo-2017 taxonomic-and-biogeographic-revision New-Guinean-genus Ophiotettix-Walker-1871 Metrodorinae Ophiotettigini-trib.-nov.33-new-species nature's-creations encouraged U.S.-species spectacular closed Halloween orange-and-black Argus-tortoise-beetle Chelymorpha-cassidea oleander-caterpillar Syntomeida-epilais wheel-bug Arilus-cristatus morning-glory Convolvulaceae sweet-potato toxic-compounds alkaloids nerve-poisons monarch-butterfly milkweed-leaf-beetle oleander-aphid predator-protection polka-dot-wasp-moth vermillion-wings iridescent-blue-body white-spots wasp-mimicry ultrasonic-song mate-attraction egg-deposition oleander-leaf caterpillars cluster-feeding cardiac-glycosides heart-poisons dogbane-beetles natural-enemies barrel-shaped-eggs pale-orange exoskeleton-hardening orange-black-orange antennae-pale-orange body-and-legs-jet-black rear-end-brilliant-orange stout-beak proboscis impalement digestive-enzymes liquefaction medieval-torture-wheel Hemiptera true-bugs sucking-mouthparts incomplete-metamorphosis egg-nymph-adult plant-feeders harlequin-bugs squash-bugs stink-bugs fierce-predators pest-control Reduviidae assassin-bugs Zelus-longipes milkweed-assassin-bug sticky-forelegs prey-snaring proteolytic-enzymes predigestion muscular-pump black-wing-buds goldenrods meadow-plants Pselliopus-barberi orange-assassin-bug black-stripes stealth leafhopper brown-marmorated-stink-bug Halyomorpha-halys biological-control-agent native-protein-sources autumn-egg-laying spring-hatching May-June red-abdomens orange-antennae sawfly-larvae beetles other-bugs painful-poke caution handling pet-keeping Mad-Magazine Spy-vs-Spy pointy-nosed-secret-agents entomological-equivalent Bug-vs-Bug Heteroptera clan awesome-predator native-to-North-America record-numbers nursery function-of-wheel speculation cautious-approach embrace liquefied-meal protein-for-growth egg-production cluster-size tree-bark magnificent-creatures wide-variety scores stealthy-stalking assassination complementary-outbreak benefit naturally-occurring-predators parasites stem-onslaught no-interest-in-humans retreat memorable-painful-poke firsthand-experience clever-assassin USDA-NIFA-SCRI-Award research-support action-video website predator-prey-relationship natural-enemy ultimate-comeuppance Chinese-praying-mantis yellow-and-black-garden-spider arachnid close-encounter invasive-pest Asia Allentown-PA 1990s millions-of-dollars-damage crops home-invasion 33-states winter-refuge rising-crescendo concern farm-fields landscapes creature's-bane bounty awesome-six-legged-predator medieval-torture-device source-of-speculation little-fact tasty-morsel mark hapless-victim slurp protein-for-development autumn well-fed-female several-to-more-than-one-hundred sycamore-tree attendance irony nocent triggered-outbreak remain-to-be-seen word-of-caution Assasi pet laboratory learned-firsthand try-not-to-handle victim Shrewsbury Martinson Sargent fascination inspiration archive creatures trees UF extension integrated-pest-management NC-State AG295 html tortoise-beetles IFAS orn ole-cpillar UKY Agriculture CritterFiles casefile insects bugs assassin suggested-common-name scientific-name Linnaeus Megha-Kalsi Dakshina-R.-Seal publication preparation happy-safe-Halloween eat-stink-bug part-3 meets-wheel-bug mid-Atlantic-region inimitable-pest apples vegetables soybeans homes discovery damage distress homeowners wicked-winter previous-episodes give-stink-bugs Baby-boomers outwit undo sucking-insects Mother-Nature liquefied-tissues egg-conversion clusters spring bright-red-abdomens lucky half-dozen stealthily-stalked assassinating stinky-marmorated-cousins no-particular-interest stalking-humans too-large taste-bad firsthand beware handling-directly Ashley Nancy Chris Ryan Erik Caroline wrangling death-of-stink-bug Part-2 vandalizing-vegetables sullying-soybeans invading-homes wide-variety-crops curious-reunion arachnid-kind stalking capturing assassinating-stink-bugs game gorgeous-wheel-bug-nymphs cluster-near-eggs venturing-off first-victim true-bug-clan bed-bugs leaf-footed-bugs nefarious-brown-marmorated-stink-bug predicted struggle protect-crops prevent-stinky-invaders overlook eating-mechanism business-end powerful-beak front-legs cautiously-approaches embraces impales pumps-strong-digestive-enzymes liquefy-body-tissues slurps larvae tens-to-more-than-one-hundred plant-hoppers aphids increase-in-populations stink-bug-laden-nursery curious-irony outbreak beneficial-wheel-bugs iNaturalist-taxon rank preferred-common-name observations-count 399 Wikipedia-summary kingdom phylum class order family genus GBIF-taxonomy-match matched-scientific-name canonical-name status accepted match-type exact distribution-records authorship specific-epithet classification eukaryota nomotettix-cristatus authority basionym group grasshoppers-crickets-katydids species instructions fill-all-fields available-knowledge field-cannot-be-supported return-null NOT-repeat-information each-section-focused useful-detail schema taxon-record entomology-guide accurate conservative informative factual-correctness completeness clarity verbosity usefulness CRITICAL-RULES information-not-clearly-supported NOT-infer-species-level-traits higher-taxa explicitly-justified NOT-repeat-same-information multiple-fields unique-non-overlapping-content vague-generalizations like-most-insects typically-feeds-on-plants cautious-language has-been-observed is-known-to NOT-fabricate behaviors diet life-cycle-details host-relationships FIELD-INTENT summary high-level-overview 3-5-sentences appearance physical-description-only identification distinguish-from-similar-taxa habitat environment-conditions distribution geographic-range-only seasonality timing-of-activity feeding-habits null-if-unknown developmental-stages behavior notable-actions-or-habits ecologicalRole role-in-ecosystem humanRelevance interaction-with-humans similarTaxa must-include-reason misconceptions only-if-meaningful extraDetails important-additional-context STYLE-RULES clear-direct-sentences avoid-fluff-filler-language repeating-taxonomy-in-prose overly-technical-jargon concrete-statements abstract-descriptions QUALITY-RULES completeness-high most-fields-well-supported completeness-medium partial-but-reliable completeness-low sparse-data hasInferredContent true-ONLY-if-generalization-used otherwise-false OUTPUT-FORMAT strictly-match-JSON-schema no-extra-fields no-commentary-outside-JSON water-associated three-subspecies N.-c.-cristatus N.-c.-compressus N.-c.-floridanus small-size 399-observations exact-match medium-completeness no-inferred-content factual-correctness-prioritized conservative-approach informative-content no-fluff no-vague-generalizations cautious-language-where-needed no-fabrication unique-field-content focused-sections JSON-schema-compliance no-commentary
Pentacentrinae
Silent Litter Crickets
A subfamily of crickets (family Gryllidae) distributed across tropical Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Members are commonly known as 'Silent Litter Crickets,' though the basis for this common name is not explicitly documented in available sources. The subfamily comprises four recognized tribes (Aphemogryllini, Homalogryllini, Nemobiopsini, Pentacentrini) and several unplaced genera, including fossil taxa. The tribe Lissotrachelini was moved to Nemobiinae.
Orthoptera Gryllidae crickets tropical litter-crickets silent-crickets
Trigonidiidae
Sword-tailed Crickets, Ground Crickets, Wood Crickets, Trigs
Trigonidiidae is a family of small crickets within the superfamily Grylloidea, comprising two subfamilies: Nemobiinae (wood/ground crickets) and Trigonidiinae (sword-tail crickets). Members are typically small-bodied with diverse habitat associations ranging from woodland leaf-litter to sandy beaches and urban parks. The family exhibits complex acoustic communication, including calling songs, courtship songs, and substrate-borne vibrational signals in some species. Several genera, including Anaxipha and Cranistus, have been documented using drumming behavior during courtship. Many species remain poorly known, with ongoing taxonomic work describing new species primarily from China and other regions.
crickets acoustic-communication substrate-vibration urban-ecology taxonomically-active-group
Trigonidiinae
trigs, sword-tail crickets, winged bush crickets
Trigonidiinae is a subfamily of true crickets (family Trigonidiidae) in the order Orthoptera, suborder Ensifera. Commonly known as trigs, sword-tail crickets, or winged bush crickets, this group contains small crickets with diverse morphological adaptations. The subfamily includes tribes Phylloscyrtini (Americas distribution) and Trigonidiini (worldwide except Antarctica), along with numerous genera distributed across tropical and temperate regions globally. Many species exhibit distinctive traits such as enlarged maxillary palps, sword-shaped ovipositors, and specialized acoustic communication including substrate-borne vibrational signals.
Orthoptera crickets Ensifera acoustic-communication vibrational-signaling sexual-dimorphism taxonomy biodiversity conservation