House Cricket
Achetus domesticus
Appearance
- Adults – 3/4" long.
- They are mostly pale brown, with a black pattern on the head and thorax. They have two pairs of wings, but only the rear pair are used for flying.
Lifecycle
- Each female will lay between 50 to 100 eggs in a damp substrate. These hatch in about two to three weeks.
- It takes the tiny crickets eight to twelve weeks to reach full maturity.
- Adult crickets generally live two to three months.
Habits
- It is the male cricket that chirps, or stridulates, to attract the females. It does this by rubbing the teeth on the sharp edge of one wing against the rough scraper of the opposite wing, using it as a bow.
- Crickets prefer soft plant matter, but will also eat other insects and carrion.
- Their hind legs are modified for jumping.
