Cricket Invasion

The thick vegetation from the rainy summer provides extra food for crickets. The mild winter followed by a wet summer creates the ideal environment for crickets. Chris Sansone says "I think we are just seeing the leading edge of the cricket invasion. I think when we get that first cool front in September we will see a lot more crickets come into town." The city heat attracts crickets from the countryside. Crickets also light the city lights, thus your best defense is to turn off the lights. Chris Sansone says "when you are out in the country and you see the big city lights, the crickets start flying into the lights. Obviously, that is when they start mating. Once they mate, they lay their eggs." The cricket noises may be annoying to humans, but to a female cricket the sound is a romantic song. Chris Sansone says "it is a mating call. The males are calling for the females. The most typical way is they just move their wings together. If you look closely under the scope, one edge is smooth and another rough. They just do it like a bow fiddle. The big black crickets are southwestern field crickets. They eat decayed organic matter and are not a threat to crops. Chris Sansone says "they really do not feed on actively growing plants. They are not a threat to landscape or producers. They are truly a nuisance pest."