312 KANSAS UNIVERSITY SCIENCE BULLETIN. 



spring brood each individual has a separate well-made burrow, 

 early in the season, usually under some stone or board. The 

 male keeps his as long as he lives, or well through the breeding 

 period at least ; while the female abandons hers when she be- 

 comes an adult, or even before. Thereafter she may be found 

 with the male in his burrow or in any convenient hiding place. 



The young individuals of the autumn brood never make much 

 of a burrow, but live under bunches of loose, dry grass or old 

 rags, or whatever they find. I have frequently found more 

 than a dozen in an old newspaper in the grass. The adult 

 males sometimes have a sort of burrow, particularly late in the 

 season, but most of the time I find them in any kind of a hiding 

 place. I am quite sure, however, that these creatures, young 

 and old, especially the males, have a selected spot in the grass 

 or paper, which serves as their home, and so the diff'erence 

 between the spring and autumn forms is really this : the former 

 dig a burrow for a home, while the latter simply select some 

 convenient place to stay. 



Judging from my study of the germ cells of Gryllus domes- 

 ticus, given in a former paper (3) , this species is quite different 

 from the other forms. The diff'erence of chromosome number 

 and shape are such that I should expect the domestic species to 

 be very different in taxonomic characters; but such is not the 

 case. 



In other genera of the family Gryllidse the species are more 

 distinct and limited. In CEccmthns, following Hart (10), we 

 classify the species largely by the color markings on the basal 

 joints of the antennae, and this seems to be quite constant. I 

 have found that I can separate the nymphs quite readily by 

 means of these markings. Nemobius shows more variation, 

 and probably after large, widespread collecting the species may 

 prove to intergrade. In Gryllotalpa the species are quite 

 distinct. 



FOOD HABITS. 



Very many observers have written of the food habits. It 

 is known that the common black field crickets may eat almost 

 anything. In captivity they will sometimes devour each other, 

 the stronger ones feasting on the weaker ones even before they 

 are dead. I have seen a female chew the wing of a male, and 

 I have found a crippled female with her abdomen partly eaten 

 away. In their free life I think this rarely or never occurs. 



