286 Phylum A rthropoda 



food. They were especially fond of peanut butter, neglecting other 

 favorite foods when it was available. A few individuals of C. latibuli 

 were reared to maturity on a diet consisting solely of peanut butter and 

 sugar. Grass and other green vegetation were rejected, as were bread, 

 flour, and other starchy substances unless no other food was supplied, 

 when they were eaten sparingly. In colonies of Ceuthophilus there is 

 heavy mortality when ecdysis occurs for the soft, helpless teneral insects 

 are eaten by their cannibalistic mates. Only a small proportion of the 

 individuals in a crowded cage survive to reach maturity. 



The need for shelter and protection from low humidity are dominating 

 factors in the lives of these insects. Caged individuals of C. latibuli 

 continually undermined dishes of food and water placed on the sand. 

 Though many spent the day clustered together in the shadowy upper 

 corners of the cage, others hid themselves more or less completely in 

 burrows. 



M. E. D. 



Reference 



For the feeding of meadow grasshoppers see p. 242. 



Family gryllidae 



ON REARING GRYLLIDAE 



B. B. Fulton, North Carolina State College 



GROUND crickets, Nemobius and Gryllus, may easily be reared in 

 large battery jars of one gallon or more capacity. Single pairs do 

 fairly well in jars as small as one quart. There should be about one 

 inch of sand in the bottom, kept slightly moist. If the jars are at least 

 8 inches tall it is not necessary to cover them. Mold develops more 

 rapidly on the food materials if the jars are covered. A watch glass or 

 small dish of water may be kept in the jar with larger crickets but the 

 very young crickets may drown in it. This is not necessary if the sand 

 is kept moistened. The jars should be kept out of direct sunlight in the 

 summer. The crickets may be fed on a great variety of food materials.* 

 Those things that do not mold too quickly are satisfactory. I have used 

 lettuce, grass, and fruits, but the least troublesome food is one that I 

 make from rolled oats. The rolled oats are ground in a mortar with a 

 little sugar and skim milk powder and enough water to make a stiff 

 paste. This is spread thinly on heavy wrapping paper with a spatula 



♦Editor's Note: Norman Criddle reported in Canad. Ent. 57:79, 1925, that Gryllus 

 assimilis pennsylvanicus and G. a. luctuosus consume animal matter with relish and that 

 he has reared 1st instar nymphs on tabanid flies alone. Moistened bran was also used. 

 M. E. D. 



