Species Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa - European Mole Cricket

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Internet References · Works Cited

European Mole Cricket - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa - female

Any ideas? - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa - male

Unknown Burrowing beetle with the hind end of a cricket, the head of a beetle/cicada - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa

Creepy Crawler - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa

Huge mole-like insect in the mud. Some kind of larvae? - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa

Help ID Insect - Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Orthoptera (Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids)

Suborder Ensifera (Long-horned Orthoptera)

Infraorder Gryllidea (Crickets)

Family Gryllotalpidae (Mole Crickets)

Genus Gryllotalpa

Species gryllotalpa (European Mole Cricket)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa (Linnaeus 1758)

Explanation of Names

gryll - cricket

talpa - mole

Size

36-46 mm

Identification

Brown, covered with velvety hair. Front legs modified for digging. Females lack the external ovipositor of other crickets.

Range

Europe; in the U.S. recorded roughly from Massachusetts to New York & eastern New Jersey, and also from Belle Glade, Florida. Many of these records seem to represent populations that have not persisted to today.

Currently known to be well established only in Westchester Co., NY, and adjacent CT.

Food

This cricket feeds at night by tunneling the upper 1-2" of the soil; feeding on seedlings, roots and stems cutting them off above the ground, also eats the seeds. (1)

Life Cycle

Eggs are laid in underground chambers.

Remarks

Introduced from Europe. It reached pest proportions in the 1910s

Internet References

University of Florida

Encyclopedia of Life

Wikipedia

Works Cited

1.	Eastern Forest Insects Whiteford L. Baker. 1972. U.S. Department of Agriculture · Forest Service.

Contributed by David J. Ferguson on 30 July, 2010 - 8:59am
Additional contributions by Beatriz Moisset, metrioptera, Marci Hess
Last updated 13 July, 2023 - 9:04am

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2023 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Printer Friendly Version