House cricket

Acheta domesticus · The house cricket is a gray or brownish insect, likely native to Southwestern Asia, that is now found worldwide as a pet food and research insect.

House cricket
Photo: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0
House cricket
Photo: Petr Gebelt, CC BY 3.0
House cricket
Photo: gianni del bufalo, CC BY 2.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderOrthoptera
FamilyGryllidae
GenusAcheta
SpeciesAcheta domesticus

Where it lives

Probably native to southwest Asia; now found worldwide and widely farmed.

Fun facts

  • House crickets will even eat dead members of their own species, along with flowers, leaves, fruits, grasses and other insects.
  • A house cricket can complete its whole life cycle in just two to three months in warm conditions.
  • House crickets survive cold weather in and around buildings, and even in dumps where heat from rotting waste keeps them warm.
  • Young house crickets look like small adults, except they are smaller and have no wings.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).