Horsehair-worm

Guides

• Gryllus firmus

  Sand Field Cricket, Sand Cricket

  Gryllus firmus, the sand field cricket, is a wing-polymorphic cricket native to the southeastern United States. It exhibits a distinctive chirping call that distinguishes it from the trilling calls of closely related species. The species is notable for producing two egg types—fast-developing and diapause eggs—within single clutches, an adaptation to unpredictable conditions in sandy habitats. Wing morphs are associated with trade-offs between dispersal and reproduction: long-winged individuals can fly but have reduced fecundity, while short-winged individuals have enhanced reproductive output. The species hybridizes with Gryllus pennsylvanicus where their ranges overlap.

  wing-polymorphismbet-hedgingdiapausehybrid-zoneacoustic-signalinglife-history-trade-offparasitismGryllus-firmus/Gryllus-pennsylvanicus-hybridizationcuticular-hydrocarbonsmate-choiceinbreeding-depressionextra-nuclear-inheritancematernal-effectshorsehair-wormParagordius-variuseugregarinetemperature-dependent-chirpingDolbear's-lawspeciationsexual-selectionimmunity-reproduction-trade-offflight-muscle-histolysissandy-soil-habitatephemeral-habitatcolonizing-speciesphenotypic-plasticityRNAinon-model-organismevolutionary-developmental-biology