Mole Cricket

Mole crickets belong to the family Gryllotalpidae, an unusual group of orthopterans that have evolved a body plan strikingly convergent with true moles, right down to broad, paddle-shaped forelegs used for digging through soil. They are related to true crickets but differ dramatically in shape, being stout, cylindrical, and covered in a dense, velvety coating of fine hairs.

The family is found on most continents, with several species established in North America, some native and others introduced from South America. Mole crickets spend the overwhelming majority of their lives underground in extensive tunnel systems just beneath the soil surface, making them far more often heard than seen, particularly through the loud, sustained calling songs males produce from the mouths of their burrows.

Ecologically, mole crickets are notable soil-dwelling omnivores, and because their tunneling activity can disturb the root zones of grasses and turf, several species are recognized as turfgrass and pasture pests in parts of their range.

• Stout, cylindrical body covered with fine, velvety, brown-to-gray hairs, quite unlike the slender shape of true crickets.
• Greatly enlarged, flattened, shovel-like front legs with stout digging claws, used for tunneling through soil.
• Small eyes and short antennae relative to body size; short wings that do not extend past the abdomen in many species.
• Body length roughly 25–50 mm depending on species.
• Lookalikes: true crickets have long, slender hind legs built for jumping and lack the mole cricket's broad digging forelegs, making the mole cricket unmistakable once its front legs are seen.

Mole crickets are found on most continents in moist, well-drained soils, including lawns, golf courses, pastures, agricultural fields, and riverbanks. They live almost entirely underground in shallow tunnel systems, with adults occasionally coming to the surface at night, particularly during humid conditions or after rain, and are drawn to lights during dispersal flights.

Mole crickets spend most of their time tunneling just below the soil surface, feeding on plant roots, seeds, and small soil-dwelling invertebrates depending on species and life stage. Males produce a loud, sustained, buzzing calling song from a specially shaped burrow entrance that amplifies the sound, used to attract females over long distances. Their extensive tunneling can loosen and disturb turf and pasture root systems, which is why some species are recognized as turf and pasture pests.

Mole crickets undergo incomplete metamorphosis, with wingless to short-winged nymphs resembling miniature adults. Females lay eggs in underground chambers; nymphs develop through multiple instars over several months to about a year, feeding and tunneling in soil throughout. Most species complete one generation per year in temperate climates, overwintering as nymphs or adults deep in the soil.