ORTHOPTERS: CRICKETS. 



173 



are found upon plants and trees, where they sit for 

 hours, holding up their fore legs, ready to seize any 



Fig. 326. American Mantis. 



insect which comes within reach. Some of the super- 

 stitious inhabitants of the East believe that at such 

 times the Mantis is engaged in religious devotions. 

 Figure 326 represents the only kind found in the 

 United States. 



CRICKETS. 



Crickets have a flattened body, long antenna, and 

 long appendages behind. The males chirrup to at- 

 tract their mates, and this familiar 

 sound is often heard throughout the 

 night. It is produced by rubbing the 

 wings against one another. The most 

 common crickets of the fields are dark- 

 colored, but some, like the Climbing 

 Crickets, are white. The Mole Crick- 

 ets have fore feet resembling those of 

 the Mole, and well adapted for digging. 

 They burrow in the ground, and prey 

 upon other insects. Some kinds of crickets take up 

 their abode in houses, and the sound of " the cricket 

 on the hearth " is a familiar one to people who live 

 in the country. 



Fig. 327. White 

 Climbing Cricket. 



