Camel Cricket

Camel crickets belong to the family Rhaphidophoridae, a group found worldwide and named for the pronounced hump of the thorax and abdomen that gives them a camel-like silhouette. Unlike field or house crickets, camel crickets are entirely wingless as adults and produce no chirping song, relying instead on their long antennae and powerful legs for navigating dark, humid environments.

Their extremely long hind legs and antennae, combined with their arched back and quick, erratic jumping, often lead people to mistake them for large spiders at first glance, earning them the nickname spider crickets in parts of North America. They are naturally cave-dwelling insects in many regions, but several species, including some introduced from Asia, have become common inhabitants of basements, crawl spaces, and other artificially dark, moist structures.

As omnivorous scavengers, camel crickets play a useful ecological role in caves and similar habitats, breaking down organic debris and fungal material, and they in turn serve as prey for cave-dwelling spiders, salamanders, and other predators.

• Wingless, humpbacked body, 12–25 mm, arched noticeably at the thorax
• Extremely long, thin hind legs and long, thread-like antennae
• Mottled brown coloration, sometimes with darker banding on the legs
• No wings and no chirping sound, unlike field or house crickets
• Lookalikes: spiders have eight legs and no antennae; field and house crickets have wings and a flatter back

Camel crickets are found worldwide, naturally inhabiting caves, rotting logs, hollow trees, and other cool, dark, humid microhabitats. Several species readily adapt to human structures, becoming common in damp basements, crawl spaces, garages, and window wells, particularly in temperate regions of North America.

Camel crickets are nocturnal omnivorous scavengers, feeding on fungi, decaying organic matter, fabric, and occasionally other insects, living or dead. They lack wings and the sound-producing structures found in true crickets, so they are entirely silent, relying on jumping and rapid, erratic movement to escape threats. In their natural cave habitat, camel crickets are an important part of the detritus food web, recycling nutrients in an environment with little plant growth, and they serve as prey for cave salamanders, spiders, and other predators.

Females lay eggs in moist soil or organic debris using a slender ovipositor. Nymphs hatch resembling small, wingless versions of the adults and pass through several molts over the course of a few months, gradually increasing in size while retaining the same wingless, humpbacked body form. Development to adulthood generally takes several months, and in temperate climates many species overwinter as nymphs or eggs in sheltered, insulated locations such as caves or deep leaf litter.