Family Rhaphidophoridae - Camel Crickets

Classification · Other Common Names · Numbers · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Remarks · Internet References · Works Cited

Nifty Grasshopper - Ceuthophilus uhleri - male

Cave Crickets - Ceuthophilus stygius - male

Robust Camel Cricket - Udeopsylla robusta - male

Ceuthophilus Genus Cricket - Ceuthophilus

Uhler's camel cricket - Ceuthophilus uhleri - female

Greenhouse Camel Cricket - Diestrammena asynamora - female

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Orthoptera (Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids)

Suborder Ensifera (Long-horned Orthoptera)

Infraorder Tettigoniidea (Katydids, Camel Crickets, and relatives)

Family Rhaphidophoridae (Camel Crickets)

Other Common Names

Cave Crickets

Sand-treader Crickets

Numbers

ca. 150 spp. in 23 genera in NA(1)

Identification

Hump-backed large crickets with long antennae and very long legs. Wingless (and thus unable to chirp) up to about 25 mm long. Able to jump several feet, which can be startling. Light tan to dark brown in color.

Range

The family is found world-wide, and is widespread in North America south of Arctic regions.

Habitat

Most favor cool damp places - caves, rotten logs, under leaves or rocks. Will not reproduce indoors unless they find continuous dark, moist conditions.

Species living in perpetual darkness, as deep in caves, may have eyes reduced or missing, and often have long slender limbs.

"Sand-treader Crickets" live in burrows in deep sand (usually dune) areas, with stout hind legs for digging, and most have hind tibiae with long spurs modified into a "sand basket" that apparently helps in digging and moving through the sand.

Food

Most are omnivorous and will feed on most anything organic. Many (if not most) will catch and eat other smaller animals when they can. In houses may chew on paper products, occasionally fabric.

Remarks

If these occur in a house the best treatment is to remove them and their breeding habitat - cool moist dark places such as piles of logs or boards in basements. A clean dry home will not be a welcoming place for these guys. Although they are scary-looking they are basically harmless to humans, except perhaps for minor damage to stored items, and are easily discouraged by eliminating the dark damp habitat they prefer.

Taxonomy of genus Diestrammena is discussed under this image of D. asynamora:

Internet References

Iowa State University

Clemson University

Singing Insects of North America

Works Cited

1.	American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico Ross H. Arnett. 2000. CRC Press.

Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by Hannah Nendick-Mason, Graham M, David Ferguson, kschnei, v belov, Abigail Parker, KenW, metrioptera
Last updated 19 February, 2014 - 6:54am

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