The chirping of crickets is a familiar sound of summer. Crickets are jumping insects that are closely related to grasshoppers. There are about 2,400 species, or kinds, of crickets.

Where crickets live

Crickets are common in tropical areas and other warm parts of the world. Most need a moist environment, but some can live in dry places. Crickets are found in fields, trees, and bushes and on the forest floor. Some kinds live in caves. The common field crickets and house crickets sometimes enter buildings. The tiny species called ant-loving crickets live in ant nests.

Physical features

Crickets may be anywhere from ¹/₁₀ of an inch to 2 inches (3 to 50 millimeters) long. They are usually brown, black, or green. Most crickets have two pairs of wings: tough, stiff forewings and thin, long hind wings. When not in use, the hind wings are folded beneath the forewings for protection. The powerful hind legs are longer than the entire body. They are used for jumping.

Crickets have long, thin antennae that they use to smell and touch. They also have hearing organs on the forelegs.

Behavior

Crickets are usually nocturnal, which means they are active at night. They spend the day hiding in plants, under dead leaves or rocks, in dark basements, or in burrows that they dig in the soil. They come out at night to feed. Crickets eat mostly leaves and other plant foods, but some also eat other small insects. The field cricket and the house cricket sometimes even feed on paper and clothes.

Though they have two pairs of wings, most kinds of crickets cannot fly. They move mostly by jumping. Sometimes they use their wings to soar farther during a jump.

Crickets use chirps to communicate with each other. They produce the sound by scraping the rough surface of one forewing along a row of notches on the other forewing. Usually only male crickets chirp. They have different “songs” for different purposes. One song attracts females. Another tells a female it is time for mating. A third warns off other males.

Some kinds of crickets chirp more quickly as the temperature increases. The approximate temperature in degrees Fahrenheit can be found by counting the chirps such crickets make in 15 seconds and adding 40. The snowy tree cricket is also called the thermometer cricket because it is especially sensitive to temperature change.

Life cycle

A female cricket lays its eggs through a long, needlelike organ called an ovipositor. Some crickets lay their eggs in the soil. Others cut into the stems of plants and insert their eggs there. Newly hatched crickets, called nymphs, look much like their parents but do not have wings. They become adults after molting—shedding their skin—6 to 12 times. After each molting they emerge slightly larger.

Crickets and people

Many people like to hear the chirping of crickets. In the folklore of many peoples, house crickets are said to bring good fortune. In East Asia male crickets are kept in cages so people can listen to them at close range. In some countries people eat crickets or use them as bait for catching fish.