Crickets
Crickets are sometimes nuisances in buildings. Infestations are
generally seasonal. Most often problems occur during the fall as
evenings become cooler and the insects seek buildings for warmth and
shelter. Crickets may also cause damage to fabrics or other materials.
Occasionally they invade structures in large numbers. They are often
attracted to lights around a building at night. Besides the damage they
may cause, they produce a chirping sound that may become very annoying
to inhabitants.
Crickets are related to grasshoppers. They do not have a
complete metamorphosis, so the young resemble the adults, except they
do not have functional wings. The most common crickets to invade
structures include the house cricket and the field cricket, which are
very similar in appearance.
House crickets range in length from 1/2" - 3/4". They
may be light yellowish brown with three dark bands on the head or they
may be solid shiny black. This species has long, slender antennae. The
field cricket is slightly larger, up to 1" long, and usually brown or
black. Females of both species have a long, thin ovipositor projecting
from the tip of the abdomen.
Crickets usually over-winter in the egg stage. Outdoors, house crickets
lay up to 725 eggs and produce only 1 generation per year. Field
crickets lay 150 - 400 eggs and may produce 3 generations per year.
House crickets may also deposit eggs indoors in sheltered areas, such
as crevices and behind baseboards. When this occurs, only about 100
eggs are deposited.
Outdoors around buildings, crickets are typically found in
moist situations such as mulch areas, plant beds, and around and under
woodpiles, stones and debris. They feed on plants or dead or live
insects. They often enter homes seeking moisture. When they invade
homes, many kinds of clothing or carpets may be damaged. Favorite
fabrics include wool, cotton, silk and synthetics. Clothing soiled with
perspiration or stains are especially attractive to crickets. They eat
out large areas of fabric, as opposed to small holes typical of moths.
Allgood Pest Solutions provides Pest Control and Termite Control
for Georgia including Atlanta, Marietta, Kennesaw, Alpharetta, Roswell,
Duluth, Suwanee, Peachtree City, Fayetteville, Dalton, Macon, Dublin,
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Swainsboro, Brunswick, St. Mary's.
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