ORTHOPTERA. 



II 9 



Family VII. — Gryllid^e.* 



{Crickets.) 



The Crickets constitute the last of the three families embraced 

 in the section Saltatoria. They agree with the members of the pre- 

 ceding family, the Locustidoe, in the possession of long, slender, 

 delicately-tapering antennae, and differ in the form of the tegmina, 

 the number of segments in the tarsi, and the form of the ovipositor. 

 The tegmina in the Gryllidae are horizontal, with the outer portion 

 bent abruptly downwards ; the tarsi are three-jointed, except in CEcan- 

 tJius, which has the hind tarsi four-jointed, and the ovipositor is 

 usually long and spear-shaped. 



With most species of crickets the two sexes differ greatly in ap- 

 pearance. The female has a long ovipositor, and the venation of 

 the tegmina is simple, while the male has the veins upon the hori- 

 zontal part of the tegmina so modified as to admit of their being 

 used as a musical organ. 



During the latter part of the summer and in the autumn, the air 

 is filled with the cries of the crickets. With care it is easy to ob- 

 serve these little fiddlers calling their mates. The common field- 

 crickets lurk in holes in the ground and under stones, or, emerging 

 from these retreats, run through the grass in search of food. At 

 the season indicated above, the male crickets spend much time at 

 or near the entrance of their 

 burrows, making their pecu- 

 liar calls. So intent upon 

 this are they, that by moving 

 quietly one can approach 

 sufficiently near to watch 

 them carefully. And even 

 when they are disturbed they 

 retreat into their holes only 

 for a short time, if all re- 

 mains still. At night they 

 can be observed by means 

 of a lantern, as light does 

 not disturb them. In order 

 to understand the manner 

 of making these calls, it is necessary to study the structure of 

 the tegmina. In the male crickets these organs differ greatly 



Fig. 107. — Tegmina of male Gryllus. 



* Gryllidae, Gryllus: gryllus, a cricket. 



