Mole cricket

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Mole cricket
Gryllotalpa brachyptera, Victoria, Australia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Orthoptera Suborder: Ensifera Superfamily: Grylloidea Family: Gryllotalpidae Saussure, 1870
distribution Gryllotalpidae
Genera
Gryllotalpa Neocurtilla Scapteriscus

The mole crickets compose family Gryllotalpidae, of thick-bodied insects about 3-5 cm (1-2 inches) long, with large beady eyes and shovel-like forelimbs highly developed for burrowing and swimming. They can also fly—the adult mole cricket may fly as far as 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) during mating season, is active most of the year, and spends the winter in hibernation. Younger insects can have shorter wings, and their appearance varies by species, with some resembling grasshoppers or very large ants or dark-colored "termites" when wings are short.

Mole crickets are omnivores, feeding on larvae, worms, roots, and grasses. Common predators of mole crickets include birds, rats, skunks, armadillos, raccoons and foxes.

Life cycle of a Mole cricket

Mole crickets are relatively common, but because they are nocturnal and spend nearly all their lives underground in extensive tunnel systems, they are rarely seen. They inhabit agricultural fields, lawns and golf courses. They are present in every continent with the exception of Antarctica, and are commonly considered pests. In East Asia, however, they are sometimes used as food (fried).

In some places, mole cricket numbers are declining due to soil erosion and habitat destruction.

For more information on the 10 types of species, use this link for information provided by the University of Florida: http://molecrickets.ifas.ufl.edu/mcri0002.htm

[edit] Mole cricket species

There are several species of mole cricket, separated into groups by tribe:

• tribus Gryllotalpini
  • Gryllotalpa
    • Gryllotalpa brachyptera
    • Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa
  • Gryllotalpella
  • Neocurtilla
    • Neocurtilla hexadactyla
  • † Pterotriamescaptor

• tribus Scapteriscini
  • Indioscaptor
  • Scapteriscus
  • Triamescaptor

• tribus ?
  • † Archaeogryllotalpoides
  • † Cratotetraspinus
  • † Marchandia
  • † Palaeoscapteriscops

==Gallery==