Gryllidae--three crickets together - Borrego Springs, San Diego County, California, USA
We found these three crickets and several others in the sand near our 5th wheel in 1991. All these years we've considered them Gryllodes sigillatus. Today we looked at them afresh, and I'm coming to another possibility. The top left one with tiny wings seems like a G. sigillatus female. The top right with half wings seems like a G sigillatus male.
Now, the lower right female. She has long wings. The literature says that rarely male or female G. sigillatus may have long wings. The word is rarely! Also, a key to G. sigillatus is that the antennal bases are close together, at least closer together than Acheta domesticus. It seems to me that the long-winged female has the antennal bases further apart than the other two. Actually her head and pronotum both seem to be broader. Is it possible she may be Acheta domesticus, meeting up with some cousins? We had dozens of these crickets outside the house.
Contributed by Lynn Monroe on 26 February, 2011 - 6:34pm Last updated 2 January, 2012 - 7:50am |