Striped Ground Cricket - Allonemobius fasciatus

Sorry I never answered your question about camera angles

For most crickets, it's good to get as many angles as possible, but the most helpful often include difficult to get shots. One very useful angle is the under side, showing especially the spine and spurs on the legs from below. A good shot of the face is often very helpful. Easiest to get, and just as important are clear views from side and top, especially ones showing the ovipositor, folded wings, and legs clearly. On males the venation on the top of the folded wings is often very useful. For Tree Crickets (the flattish pale ones with little pointed heads, found in the bushes and trees), it's sometimes necessary to see the base of the front (bottom) of the antennae to get a good identification. One of the most useful things, and impossible to record in a still photo, is the song of the males, but just noting how it sounds can be useful (is it continuous, interrupted, raspy or musical, etc.). Some species look identical (or nearly so) but sound totally different.

The same comments go for Katydids as well, but there it also is often very important to get the end of the abdomen in males as well as in females (and harder because they are often covered by the wings). Conehead Katydids have markings on the under (front) side of the cone on the face that are important too.

… David J. Ferguson, 4 January, 2012 - 11:47am

Can I refrigerate them?

Thanks so much for your detailed answer! The crickets I find rarely stick around long enough for a single photo, but I do have a pocket-sized recorder and could easily get recordings of their "songs". I wonder whether it would harm the crickets if I were to catch them with a butterfly net and put them in the refrigerator for a few minutes to slow them down long enough for me to take detailed photos? I don't want to hurt anybody just to get my id. :)

… Kelly Fiegle, 5 January, 2012 - 1:17pm

I chill them to photograph them

As long as you don't freeze them, it doesn't hurt them. Most can stay chilled in the 30's or 40'sF for a day or two before they start to need food. Most will sit nice and still, but a few are amazingly active right down to freezing (but not like when they are warm). However, sometimes it changes their colors a tiny bit (they might darken), and the dark of the refrigerator will bring out their (often) darker night time eye color until they adjust to the light again.

… David J. Ferguson, 5 January, 2012 - 1:20pm

Moved

Moved from Robust Ground Crickets.

… David J. Ferguson, 2 January, 2012 - 12:02am

Thanks

… Kelly Fiegle, 2 January, 2012 - 5:45am

Species are difficult in this group, and we don't have them

all sorted out yet. I'll move it to genus for now, and will get back to it. Likely it is indeed a Striped Ground Cricket.

Moved from Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids.

… David J. Ferguson, 20 December, 2010 - 4:17pm

Moved

Moved from ID Request.

… John R. Maxwell, 18 December, 2010 - 11:18am

cricket

Compare yours with Allonemobius - Robust Ground Cricket. But please wait for an expert opinion.

… Ilona L., 18 December, 2010 - 10:47am

Thanks

To all of you for confirming the Genus. Can you tell me which angles or body parts of a cricket to focus on getting pictures of in order to help with id?

… Kelly Fiegle, 21 December, 2010 - 4:51am