Garden monster mole cricket - bites and devours everything!

Ways to deal with mole crickets

There are many ways to deal with mole crickets, but you won’t be able to get rid of it quickly. First you need to try traditional methods, only after that turn to chemicals. The video will help in the fight against such insects; mole crickets are difficult to remove, so gardeners share methods. It should be taken into account that methods that are effective in one area may not produce results in another.

Traditional methods of getting rid of insects

• Frequently loosen and dig up the soil; if nests are found, destroy them and cover them with washing powder. In this way, you can destroy several hundred of them, but it is unlikely that you will be able to overcome them completely.
• In the summer, it is necessary to dig out small furrows and instill poison there. If the insects get to these places, they will be poisoned, but there is no guarantee.
• Many gardeners use a simple but effective method: in the fall, dig a small hole and bury manure in it, and when frost sets in, prepare a chemical poison, dig a ditch and fill it. With the onset of cold weather, all the mole crickets will gather in this warm place.
• By spring, you can collect eggshells, grind them into powder and sprinkle the resulting substance into each hole before planting. You need to know what the mole cricket insect eats, and accordingly, add it there.
• Pouring a soap solution into the burrows also has a good effect. Insects and their larvae quickly die from soap. Then you will need to collect all the nests with a shovel and take them away from the garden. If you miss even one nest or fail to destroy the female, the mole cricket will again take over your area. But remember that soap or washing powder can harm not only insects, but also the plants you grow.
• Some people practice planting crops with a pungent odor around the perimeter of the site and between beds of other crops. It could be garlic, mint, wormwood. Spicy-smelling leftover food products are also laid out: herring tails, spiced sprat, herring. But the effectiveness of this method is questionable, because this way you will scare away the mole cricket, but perhaps attract other pests, insects or animals.

If folk remedies do not help, then you need to use chemical ones, but such a struggle will be long. The most effective are “Antonem-F” and “Nemobakt”, which can get rid of 90% of adults and 80% of larvae.

One can talk for a long time about the benefits and harms of the mole cricket; on the one hand, it destroys the crop, and on the other, it fights other harmful insects. But getting rid of this insect is extremely difficult, and this is a fact.

Is Medvedka useful?

There can be no definite answer: everything in living nature is interconnected, and if you completely destroy the population of any creature, the food chain will be interrupted and problems will begin. The benefits of mole crickets are talked about by mentioning its ability to loosen the ground and, thus, improve the structure of the soil. But all this looks somewhat doubtful if we take into account that it will not be possible to grow anything in this loosened soil - this wonderful ripper will immediately eat everything.

Another point is the supposed healing properties of dried mole crickets in the fight against tuberculosis. Official medicine has no evidence of such an effect. For fishing, it is used as live bait only for large fish due to the size of the insect and durable chitin.

Life cycle

In spring, the female burrows into the soil to a depth of 30 cm and lays 100–350 eggs in an underground chamber. After mating, it may take one or two weeks before she begins to lay eggs.

They undergo incomplete metamorphosis. The eggs hatch in ten to twenty days. She guards them for another two to three weeks. Nymphs molt six times. As the nymphs grow, they consume large amounts of plant material underground.

It takes one to three years to reach maturity. Adults and nymphs live underground throughout the year in tunnel systems that can reach depths of over a meter in winter.

Adults can move up to 8 km during the breeding season. The entire life cycle lasts 1-3 years depending on climatic conditions.

Adult and late larvae overwinter underground at a depth of about 1 m. Mass emergence after wintering occurs when the temperature rises to 12-15 ° C.

Harmful activities of insects

How dangerous a mole cricket is for humans, if it does not threaten health, is very interesting. Gardeners, market gardeners, and owners of summer cottages deal with it. Pest is associated with the feeding habits, behavior, and life cycle of the insect.

The harm of the mole cricket The mole cricket lives underground. Digs numerous tunnels and holes. Their depth reaches 50 cm. In the process of building a nest, it damages the root system of plants. Crops dry out, become sick, and die. The insect is especially dangerous for seedlings.

The mole cricket feeds on roots, ground parts of plants, and root crops that are in the ground. In the garden it poses a danger to almost all crops.

Where did the name “bear” come from?

Mole crickets got their name for their large size, brownish-brown color, massive clawed front paws and pubescent body, which makes it possible to compare this insect with a bear. There are several popular names for these insects: cabbage grass, mole cricket or cricket mole, earthen crayfish, top.

The animal is called a cabbage plant for its love of young cabbage seedlings. The Latin name of the mole cricket from the genus Gryllotalpa sounds like “mole cricket”. This is confirmed by the similarity with a cricket in the structure of the body and the ability to make sounds. The mole cricket resembles a mole with its widened front paws and the ability to burrow into the ground. The front part of the insect resembles a crayfish: the structure of the head, shell, mustache and paws, somewhat similar to claws. The mole cricket is called a top because of the sharp claws on its front paws, reminiscent of wolf teeth.

What danger does mole cricket pose to the garden?

Having moved into my house from a rented apartment, I happily began cultivating a vegetable garden. Planting onions and sowing carrots made me happy, I was already looking forward to the finished harvest. I decided to sow carrots not like my mother, by the handful, but in a different way, to increase the yield. I took paper tape, spread it with starch paste, then glued the seeds at a distance of 0.5 cm. I sprinkled the tape with only a little earth. And I was incredibly surprised to see a week later that the earth along the entire length of the belt had been dug up.

My surprise knew no bounds; I had never seen anything like this before. It turns out that the mole cricket happily ate the sprouted carrots and snacked on the starch paste! This individual eats everything, bites off the roots of young cucumbers and especially loves young shoots of watermelons, practically dragging them into holes with it.

After the insect, only the flaccid remains of the once living shoot remain.

Yes! Burrows! This insect also digs huge tunnels that collapse, collapsing the garden bed as soon as you start watering the soil. As a result, in the first year, half of what the mole cricket did not have time to eat was dug up and collapsed, and grew small, and even clumsy.

Natural enemies

The fight against orthopteran insects should not come at the expense of the ecological situation in the cultivated area. An effective way to limit the spread of pests is to attract natural enemies.

Repellent plants

Some natural odors drive the mole cricket out of the area. Experienced gardeners plant in the cultivated area:

1. Marigold. The persistent aroma of this variety of aster is pleasant to humans, but has a deterrent effect on orthopteran garden pests.
2. Calendula. The medicinal plant, with its presence, ennobles the cultivated area and expels the mole cricket from it.
3. Chrysanthemum. The sharp, rich aroma of an elegant flower forces the pest to leave the area. Chrysanthemum bushes are planted next to vegetable plants.
4. Coniferous trees. Fir branches are laid out between the beds and along their perimeter. To preserve the aromatic properties for a long time, spruce branches are sprinkled with earth. Conifer needles are inserted into the holes with seeds. Harmful orthopteran insects cannot tolerate the fragrant aroma that is pleasant to humans.
5. Aspen. Stakes are prepared with a diameter of 2–4 cm and a length of 25–30. Hammered into the ground in places where the pest lives. Aspen branches laid out on beds with vegetable plants are suitable.

Bark is not removed from wood material. It stores a scent that repels insects.

Birds

Mole crickets are part of the typical diet of some birds. The following are attracted to the cultivated area:

1. Skvortsov. Birds actively destroy pests, and not only orthopteran beetles.
2. Crow. Mole crickets are among the insects they eat. A pair of crows will reliably protect the area from invasion.
3. Rooks. With their powerful beak they extract pests and their larvae from the soil. Rooks are smart birds. They love to follow agricultural machinery, collecting insects in the loosened soil.
4. Storks. They hunt various field pests. Mole crickets are part of the diet of storks.

Attracting these birds to the cultivated area will significantly reduce the pest population.

Animals

Insectivorous mammals and amphibians are another environmentally friendly way to control garden pests. They feed on mole crickets:

1. Jerzy. Orthoptera beetles are an important component of the diet of spiny creatures. Their energy will be a good assistant in the fight against pests.
2. Shrews. Exterminating insects, they greatly dig up the soil. Therefore, in the country house or in the garden it is better to limit their vigorous activity.
3. Scolopendra. The armored arthropod is a natural enemy of the mole cricket. Centipedes lead a predatory lifestyle. They feed on small invertebrates and insects, including Orthoptera. The bite sometimes causes an allergic reaction in people. Therefore, it is better not to breed them in large quantities on the site.
4. Lizards. The quick creature destroys insects with incredible speed. A good assistant in the fight against gardening and field pests. It is easy to attract to areas located on the shores of water bodies or in wetlands.

It is best to lure birds and hedgehogs to the cultivated area. These creatures are widespread and unpretentious to their living conditions.

RODENTS DANGEROUS TO HUMANS!

Rodents play a large role in the spread of diseases from the group of zoonoses, that is, those that are transmitted from animals to humans. Rodents-synanthropes and semi-synanthropes are especially active in the transmission of infections.

• Synanthropic rodents : black and gray rats, house mouse.

Black Rat (ship) – an experienced navigator. It is known for the fact that fleas feeding on its blood in the Middle Ages infected the plague and killed more than half the population of the European continent.

The gray rat is a highly organized pest; it lives in colonies; social relationships are carefully built in groups of animals. Cases of attacks on young children have been recorded.

The house mouse is the main carrier of smallpox rickettsiosis and other infections; the animals prefer to live in residential buildings.

• Semi-synanthropic rodents: field mouse, red, water and common voles.

The common and water voles are active spreaders of tularemia and more. The red and field mouse can spread hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), pseudotuberculosis, tularemia and many other diseases.

Synanthropic rodents are not afraid to settle next to human habitation or directly in it; semi-synanthropic rodents prefer sparsely populated buildings. Usually people are more concerned about the economic harm that animals cause: spoiled things and food, damaged furniture and equipment. And yet, being around rats or mice is more of a health hazard.

Rodents are carriers of infections

There are more than 30 infectious diseases transmitted by rodents.

How do mice and rats become carriers of infections? The burrows and nests of animals are teeming with infected ectoparasites; the bite of an infected blood-sucking insect (this can be horseflies, fleas, mosquitoes, ticks) is enough to turn a harmless mouse into an object that poses a sanitary and epidemiological threat.

Infection of humans can occur through feces and urine, saliva of rodents, contaminated water and soil, and food. Often, even scrupulous cleaning of the premises is unable to protect owners from infections spread by the ubiquitous rats and mice, especially if the biological threat has not been eliminated.

Diseases spread by rodents

Main diseases spread by pests:

• Toxoplasmosis. Cysts of the Toxoplasma gondii parasite are carried not only by cats, but also by rodents. The disease itself may be asymptomatic or have mild symptoms (slight fever, chills, pain in joints and muscles). Can cause dangerous complications: paralysis, cerebral edema, encephalitis, pneumonia.
• Rabies is a disease that greatly affects the nervous system of the patient and can be fatal.
• Encephalitis infections affect the brain; many cases of death have been recorded.
• Leptospirosis is a dangerous infectious disease that affects the kidneys, liver and nervous system.
• Giardiasis is a lesion of the small intestine accompanied by metabolic disorders.
• Pseudotuberculosis - the disease is characterized by a fever, rash, damage to the small intestine, and general intoxication of the body.
• Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.
• Tularemia.

The list of infections goes on and on. All diseases transmitted by rodents are very dangerous, many of them are difficult to treat and difficult to diagnose. To prevent their development, it is necessary not to neglect the rules of personal hygiene and to carry out measures to destroy pests in a timely manner.

Reproduction of mole crickets

After a long winter, when the ground warms up well and the air temperature does not drop below +10 degrees, sexually mature individuals crawl to the surface en masse, looking for a mate for mating. The process itself takes place underground and, upon completion, the female begins to arrange a place where she will lay eggs. Around the roots of plants, the insect digs several tunnels, where it arranges small rounded nests, which are 8-10 cm wide. Both parents are engaged in construction, then the female lays from 300 to 500 eggs.

Next, the most crucial period begins, because in order for the offspring to be viable, they need the creation of certain conditions. The female is always close to the clutch; she not only protects the future offspring, but also maintains the necessary humidity and temperature.

The timing of the appearance of the larvae depends on how well the soil has warmed up; approximately two weeks should pass, and then gray nymphs will appear. They do not yet have wings and will remain in their burrow near their mother for about a month. After the offspring becomes independent, the female dies, and the larvae will develop for several more years until they fully mature. During this period they will shed 8-10 times.

And he flies and sings. Why does a bear have a shell like a knight?

Doesn't bite, but does pinch

The wings of a mole cricket are not for beauty. She doesn't like to fly, but can only do it in warm weather when her muscles are warm. Flight height is from 50 cm to 5 m. She also swims well.

“There are several dozen species of mole crickets, but only two live in the CIS, and only the common one lives in the Belgorod region. They can fly, swim, move underground - a universal among insects,” says Alexander Prisny .

Usually the length of the mole cricket is 2–5 cm , but it can grow up to 8–10 cm . The abdomen is three times larger than the chest and head, on which the eyes are clearly visible. The insect grows up to a centimeter in thickness. The spines at the end of its body, called cerci, are also up to a centimeter long.

The mole cricket's chest shell is hard; it can use it like a knight who lowers his visor. Another feature of the insect is its legs. The hind ones, even though the mole cricket is a cricket, provide only short jumps. But the front ones are modified for digging the ground - these are real shovels, powerful and functional.

Its mouthparts are like those of a gnawing insect, so summer residents often blame the mole cricket for destroying the roots of seedlings and useful plants. Even with a strong desire, she cannot bite a person: not such a mouth. And if you dare to pick up an insect, it can pinch you with the spines on its legs.

Older than humanity

Mole crickets live in dug holes. They are usually found at a depth of up to 30 cm . But in the winter, this insect, which looks like a guest from another planet, can burrow 2 m deep, although it usually prefers to make a den in humus.

“In the old days, when they didn’t use poisons and baits that could kill them, for the winter they dug a hole about a meter wide and 30 cm deep. Horse manure was poured into it. Mole crickets from all over the area gathered there, and the main task of the gardener in winter was to dig up this pile and throw it out into the cold,” says Prisny.

The mole cricket lives throughout Europe, except Scandinavia. The Viking region is too harsh for this insect; these monsters cannot be found in the northern parts of Russia. They feel good in North Africa, Kazakhstan, the Caucasus and western Asia. Cabbage bears appeared on our planet in the Oligocene - 33–23 million years ago .

“During this time she has not changed. A species can only do its work in a specific form. It's like making a person six-fingered. He will work differently. If a species cannot do its job, then another appears in its place. No one can do the same job as a mole cricket. Its main tasks in nature are participation in soil formation in moist soil, where it is possible to compensate for labor costs with food, drainage and aeration,” explains Alexander Vladimirovich.

Mole cricket in its natural habitat.
Photo by wikipedia.org Medvedka prefers to live in warm, moist soil. So she is a frequent visitor to garden beds and greenhouses. She also lives on the banks of rivers and, by the way, can swim. You can see mole crickets on the surface during the day in May-June, when they begin to look for a mate.

“When on the river bank you see long rolls of loosened earth in the soil, then a mole cricket has passed there. This is their favorite habitat. When soil moisture is high, mole crickets rise higher. You can use them to find it in the garden,” says Prisny.

During the mating season, the female mole cricket prepares a hole with a camera. After mating, she lays up to 500 yellow eggs in it. 50–100 larvae hatch from them , less than 10% survive to the breeding state.

Young mole crickets are similar to adults, but their shell is not as strong, and their hind legs are longer relative to their body. In addition, the young are blind and without wings. The mole cricket becomes an adult in a year or two, when it molts 8–10 times. The insect lives up to 3.5 years .

“The larvae almost never come to the surface. Only if they are flooded with water. The main enemies are birds and toads. The female mole cricket remains to guard the clutch, but this is not a unique phenomenon for insects,” says Alexander Vladimirovich.

Hear the signal

The mole cricket makes a sound similar to crickets, but quieter. Like crickets, cabbage butterflies prefer to play music in the dark. And underground, they give each other signals, as if they are talking. They chirp during the day, but rarely. The fact is that by these sounds they are found by birds who do not care about the terrible appearance of the insect.

“They don’t fight for living space. I've never seen mole crickets fight. Due to this singing, they find out how many of them there are. If there are too many, they spread out. In a garden of five acres, the limit is fifty mole crickets. The main function of signals is intersexual communication between females and males. After all, they spend most of their time in the ground, and they need to find each other. A person can hear this sound at a distance of up to 100 m,” says Prisny.

Alexander Vladimirovich said that in 1960, the Department of Entomology of Moscow State University developed sound lures. A sound emitter was placed over a basin of kerosene, which the scientists selected. They flew towards him in dozens, sometimes hundreds.

House insect

Biologists have not yet fully decided what the cabbage bear eats. The fact that these insects destroy the roots does not mean that they eat them, because the roots can simply interfere with digging a tunnel.

“They feed on both invertebrates and insect larvae. But this is not the dominant food. The roots can also be trimmed, but not eaten. Mole crickets, damaging the root system, promote the growth of roots in the upper horizon, which removes excess moisture from the soil,” says Prisny.

Some people keep a mole cricket as a pet like a spider or centipede. At home, the mole cricket feeds on worms, meat, gammarus crustaceans - food for aquarium fish, insects and small cereals. The mole cricket does not eat vegetables and fruits.

Pesticides that kill pests

Medvetox - the name indicates what insects the drug is intended to combat. The granular product, which has a high level of toxicity, has an attractive odor for beetles. A mole cricket only needs to taste the chemical to die.

Rubit is an effective remedy that is convenient to use, since it does not cause harm to humans, and the granules have a bright color. They are poured into passages dug by mole crickets.

Grizzly - also available in the form of granules that have a neutral color. Quite a toxic substance, it is better to work with it with gloves.

Bankol - this drug acts in a special way. The mole cricket becomes paralyzed, cannot move and dies from hunger. The product is safe for people.

Phenoxin Plus – mole crickets and other pests like its smell and taste. A few granules sprinkled into the tunnel dug by the insect are enough to get rid of the problem forever.

Boverin is a new and well-proven remedy. It is harmless to people, animals and beneficial insects. But mole crickets die from it.

Bear bug - this pesticide is used in the form of a solution. It has no harmful effect on plants and people, but it allows you to get rid of mole crickets.

Thunder - used in small portions. 1-2 granules are enough to kill insects

People should work with this product carefully, it is toxic. Typically, gardeners resort to pesticides if traditional means of combating mole crickets have not proven themselves

And it is right. To begin with, you should try the simplest techniques, and only then, if necessary, take on the “heavy artillery”. This will give you a better chance of growing an environmentally friendly crop.

Typically, gardeners resort to pesticides if traditional means of combating mole crickets do not justify themselves. And it is right. To begin with, you should try the simplest techniques, and only then, if necessary, take on the “heavy artillery”. This will give you a better chance of growing an environmentally friendly crop.

These insects simply adore hot, sun-warmed earth. If you mulch the beds with sawdust - mole crickets will like this option much less - they will move to where it is warmer. In addition to marigolds, mole crickets also do not like some other plants. These include garlic, parsley, cilantro, and flowers - calendula and chrysanthemums. The more of the above plants on the site, the higher the likelihood that mole crickets will not appear on it. Seedlings that the gardener especially values ​​- for example, expensive varieties of tomatoes - can be planted in the garden directly in plastic bottles with the bottom cut off.

Seeing this insect for the first time, summer residents, especially women, may be scared - will it bite them? But the most that a mole cricket can do is lightly scratch human skin with its claws. Its jaws are simply not designed to bite.

Sometimes in areas, when favorable conditions are created, mole crickets can grow up to 12-15 cm.

If the sounds that a mole cricket makes (a song) are recorded on a voice recorder and turned on at night at your dacha, other insects may rush to the source of the sound.

A mole cricket can live up to 3.5 years.

Thus, knowing what this insect is and what means you can fight it with, you have every chance of getting rid of mole crickets at your dacha forever.

Although there are a large number of ways to combat mole crickets, the destruction of this pest can take several years. It turns out that in order to completely get rid of this insect you need to take comprehensive measures throughout the year. In this article we will tell you how to deal with mole crickets

during the autumn period.

Signs of a pest appearing on the site

It is not so easy to see the underground inhabitant, since the mole cricket comes to the surface mainly at night. But its presence on the site reveals a number of signs:

• holes in the soil surrounded by earth (exits of mole cricket burrows to the surface);
• bitten plant stems;
• damaged tubers or root vegetables (bite marks, gnawed areas are visible);
• drying and yellowing of shoots for no apparent reason;
• plants are easily pulled out of the ground.

Also at night you can hear mole crickets (males) singing, making loud chirping sounds. Insects move into the garden from manure heaps and neighboring areas. Typically, “settlement” occurs in the spring, when adults are looking for suitable places to live, mate, and build nests with clutches.

- nature in all its manifestations

This article contains answers to various questions about mole crickets.

Does a mole cricket bite or not?

The appearance of this insect can really frighten an unprepared person. The front legs of this beetle, which look like unique strong and developed “paws,” may cause particular concern. These “paws” have pointed teeth, with the help of which the mole cricket bites into the ground and root system of plants.

With these teeth, the mole cricket can scratch human skin. However, the mole cricket cannot bite either with its mouthparts or with its “paws”, since it does not have strong enough “muscles” for this. So the answer to the question of whether a mole cricket bites is definitely negative.

What is the largest mole cricket?

Unfortunately, there are no official institutions, like the Guinness Book of Records, that would document the maximum size and weight of mole crickets.

At the same time, gardeners claim that they have seen giant mole crickets up to 12-15 cm in size and several centimeters thick. Theoretically, this is quite possible.

A mole cricket can grow to such a size if there are very good living conditions - an optimal level of soil moisture, mild winter frosts and a varied diet.

Does the bear fly or not?

Yes, the bear flies. In May, the most romantic period in the life of mole crickets begins - the mating period. Young mole crickets remember that they have wings, which they do not need at all the rest of the time, and at night they fly off in search of a mate.

People, with their inherent cunning, take advantage of the love blindness of mole crickets: at night they put out lanterns, and under them there are troughs with a mixture of water and kerosene. Like all nocturnal insects, mole crickets fly into the light, hit a lantern, fall into a trough and die.

Can a bear sing?

Oddly enough, the answer to this question is yes. During the mating season, mole crickets show similarities with their cricket relatives; they begin to chirp in order to attract a partner. Like crickets, mole crickets' wings serve as musical instruments. On one wing there is a “bow”, on the other there are “strings”. Rubbing one wing against the other, the mole cricket makes sounds that are called the “mole cricket song.”

However, the sounds of this song evoke a completely unsentimental mood among gardeners. Hearing her, they grab a shovel and run to dig up the mole cricket, guided by its song as a guiding thread.

In 1976, American scientists conducted an interesting experiment. The bear's calling song was recorded on a tape recorder. When this recording was turned on at night, it attracted a considerable number of female mole crickets. However, it is unknown what continuation this experience received.

How long does a bear live?

In nature, in one and a half to two years, the mole cricket larva grows into an adult, which, in turn, exists for about one year. If a mole cricket is grown purposefully with the creation of the necessary conditions, then such an adult insect can live for 2-3 years.

Thus, the full life cycle of a mole cricket in the natural environment is relatively short - 2.5 - 3.5 years.

Can a mole cricket bite?

The claim that a top can bite a person is false. To do this, it is enough to examine the insect’s head with magnification. The first thing that catches your eye is the jaw. The photo shows that in addition to the large jaws of the oral apparatus, a pair of tentacles are attached, with the help of which the mole cricket finds and holds food. By the way, this insect eats not only roots and roots - the cabbage plant’s diet also includes small insects, in particular earthworms or even its young.

But the density of the human epidermis cannot be compared with the shell of worms or young larvae that are not encased in chitin. Only an insect with a piercing-sucking mouthpart can damage human skin. These include harmless-looking mosquitoes, less harmless wasps and other stinging insects, and a very inconspicuous, but extremely dangerous tick that carries serious diseases. Medvedka is not given this - and what good does she need it if her blood, like food, is not interested in her.

Medvedka: 120 photos, properties, benefits and harm. Lifestyle and habitat

An individual from the mole cricket family, arthropods, the cricket superfamily, which has straight wings and long mustaches, is popularly called a cabbage mole cricket, or a mole cricket.

origin of name

These insects became bearers of the title “mole crickets” for their large size, dark brown color, powerful front legs, and slightly downy body.

The second name of the individual is cabbage, attached due to its great love for the roots of young cabbage. Such a bug is also called a cricket - mole (translated from Latin), and for good reason - because the bug with its body structure fully resembles a cricket, it even creates a corresponding sound.

The name “mole” is also natural and quite logical - it is the front legs that help it easily overcome soil layers in search of the required food.

Also, a less common name is “top” - this name justifies its structure of the front legs. After all, they have sharp ends, slightly reminiscent of the sharp fangs of a wolf.

Basic outlines of an arthropod

The description of the mole cricket says that it is a rather small insect. The dimensions of its body can reach 50 millimeters and a thickness of 15 millimeters. The upper part of the shell is brown, the lower part is slightly yellowish. At the same time, the entire body, right down to the paws, is covered with fine fluff.

Note!

Having looked at the photo of the mole cricket, the mouth jaws are clearly visible, having additional tentacles on the sides, directed forward. The eyes have a facet structure, located on the sides of the head, and are of medium size, but it is impossible not to notice them.

There are also thin antennae on the head, the size of which is much shorter than that of crickets. The insect has 2 pairs of wings (short and long), 3 pairs of legs. The individual's auditory apparatus is located on the front pair of paws (as in other chirping Orthoptera).

Insect diet

The mole cricket is very fond of many vegetables, berries, other edible fruits, and roots. In addition to the plant menu, they eat earthworms, small beetles, dragonflies, ladybugs and other small inhabitants of the earth.

Top's place of residence

The mole cricket insect is distributed throughout Europe (with the exception of Norway and Finland). In our country, this individual can be found everywhere except the northern parts of the great country.

The main habitat of the insect is in underground passages. They are very fond of places where groundwater branches pass very close to the surface of the earth.

The daily bustle of an individual

Having previously examined the part about what a mole cricket looks like, we can say that the individual prefers to lead its lifestyle away from human eyes, namely in the upper layers of the soil.

With daily labor, these insects make trenches in the ground, eating everything in their path. At night, the mole cricket crawls out to the surface of the earth, trying to remain unnoticed.

Offspring

Reproduction of the species occurs in the spring, when the sun warms up the frozen soil quite well. Mating occurs in a favorite environment underground, after which the mole cricket larva soon emerges.

At one time, the female lays from 300 to 600 eggs, resembling millet grains (oval, yellowish-gray, 2 mm in size). The offspring hatch on average after 15 days, then, under the full care of the mother, they live in the nest for about another month.

After this period, the female freezes and dies. The larvae crawl in different directions, beginning their independent life. They dig grooves, get their own food, and develop within normal limits.

Wintering of insects

Naturally, adult (and not completely) individuals overwinter in soil balls of earth, humus or manure heaps. Going 60-120 centimeters deep, insects survive the cold season well.

With the advent of spring sunlight, warming the soil to 15 degrees, arthropods emerge from hibernation and begin an active lifestyle.

Pest control

For a good, effective result, add real (fragrant) sunflower oil to the grains of oats, grains, or other cereals, mix well and add toxic chemicals directly to the grain. Next, you need to distribute it evenly over the area, raking it with a rake.

Mole cricket insect. Lifestyle and habitat of the mole cricket

Features and habitat of the mole cricket

In life and in photos, the mole cricket looks extremely intimidating, largely due to its large forelimbs. All representatives of the species live exclusively underground. In special cases they can reach 8 centimeters in length. They settle in self-dug burrows.

The mole cricket prefers moist, well-warmed soil. As a rule, the abdomen is 3 times longer than the cephalothorax, which is not typical of other insects; it is very soft, oblong in shape, about 1 centimeter in diameter.

At the end of the abdomen there are two short hairs called “circuses”. They can reach a length of 1 centimeter. The head of the mole cricket is quite mobile; in case of danger, it can hide under the chest shell. The head is crowned with two eyes, mustaches and tentacles. There are 4 tentacles in total, they are located around the mouth. The front pair of paws is designed for digging the ground and is significantly different from the other limbs.

Despite the fact that the insect lives underground, its back is crowned with two long (sometimes longer than the body) wings. As a rule, the mole cricket is dark brown or dark gray in color, becoming lighter towards the bottom.

If necessary, the mole cricket raises its long wings and can move through the air, but not higher than 5 meters. There are also wingless individuals, so it is impossible to say for sure what a mole cricket looks like - it all depends on the species.

Character and lifestyle of the mole cricket

The mole cricket is an extremely active insect that lives underground. Moving at high speed, it searches for various roots suitable for food, thereby often ruining the life and harvest of summer residents.

An interesting fact is that mole crickets can make chirping noises. At night, chirping sounds come from the hole. As a rule, the mole cricket's burrow is quite long and is not located very deep underground. Closer to the exit it gradually expands.

Because of this expansion, individuals deep underground produce sounds that can be heard over considerable distances. They can often be confused with the sound of a cricket, although the cricket sounds much quieter.

Scientists claim that mole crickets communicate with each other using these sounds and other identification signals. During the day, the chirping is much quieter, the insect behaves calmer. The mole cricket loves moisture and in dry years can move considerable distances in search of moist soil.

It survives the winter underground, at a depth of about 2 meters. Since this insect is very harmful to the harvest, many modern and folk remedies have been invented to combat the mole cricket . Most often, when planting seedlings, poison is placed in the hole.

Another folk remedy is often used - strong soapy water is poured into the hole in large quantities, the mole cricket tries to leave the uncomfortable place for it and crawls out, where the summer resident catches it. There are more thoughtful methods on how to get rid of mole crickets . For example, a dung trap is very common, the principle of operation of which is based on the habits of the insect.

As a rule, mole crickets look for loose, warm soil for wintering; most often they prefer manure. In the fall, when the garden is being dug for winter, you need to make several holes (half a meter deep) and fill them with manure.

Most mole crickets will choose these traps in order to survive the winter, and a cunning summer resident, by digging these holes during frosts, will get rid of a large number of insects. It is worth noting that most mole crickets end up at the dacha through the manure that is used to fertilize the soil.

Due to the fact that insects are flying, they can gradually infest all nearby areas. In order to avoid the arrival of such residents from neighboring areas, you can plant chrysanthemums or calendulas in your garden, as their smell drives mole crickets away from the garden .

For the same purpose, coniferous, aspen or alder branches are used. It is also recommended to water the plants near which mole cricket tunnels were found with an infusion of onion peels. Birds that eat them and insects help reduce the number of pests. These can be lizards, hedgehogs, crows, starlings and rooks. This insect is a very terrible pest in the garden, but there are many different means of combating mole crickets.

Mole cricket nutrition

Mole cricket is an insect that eats wild and cultivated plants. These can be absolutely any plants, their roots, shoots and root crops.

If on the path of a mole cricket there are larvae living in the soil, she will also eat them. Sometimes a mole cricket can even eat another mole cricket. It is believed that mole crickets love corn, beets and potatoes most of all. However, they have the greatest and brightest feeling for cabbage, for which they are sometimes called cabbages.

When it comes to cabbage, the mole cricket does not know when to stop. She eats the root, young shoots, and sometimes the fruits themselves. Based on your mole cricket's eating preferences, you can protect its favorite treats from attacks. For example, plant garlic around the perimeter of other beds, which the insect avoids.

Reproduction and life expectancy of mole crickets

The mole cricket nest is a unique structure. This is an intricate network of passages, which is located at a distance of 10-15 centimeters from the ground. As a rule, the mole cricket has four exits to the surface, between which there are intricate passages.

In May or June, when the air temperature is not lower than 12 degrees, adult mole crickets leave the ground and come to the surface where mating occurs. At the end of this process, they return to the depths and the females set up a nest. As a rule, the nest is located in the center of the passages.

Preventive measures

An important rule for prevention is not to use fresh manure as fertilizer. This is the most common way a pest appears on a site.

Rotted manure is inspected and, if possible, sifted before application in order to notice the mole cricket in time.

The soil is dug up and loosened in spring and autumn to destroy mole cricket tunnels and eggs. Weeds are pulled out in and around the beds, as well as in tree trunk circles. This will deprive the pest of an additional source of food.

Garlic, mint, and cilantro are planted between the beds; insects are repelled by the smell of these plants. The pest loves warm soil, and the use of light mulch - rotted straw, sawdust, pine needles - will help reduce the temperature on the soil surface.

The pest is destroyed by cats, hedgehogs, shrews, lizards, moles and birds (starlings, rooks, crows). Birdhouses for birds on the site, the creation of secluded places for lizards and hedgehogs will attract these helpers to the site. It should be taken into account that they will not completely destroy the pest and, moreover, the birds themselves can destroy the crop.

The fight against mole crickets should be systematic and constant, starting from early spring until the soil freezes. Then there is a chance to get rid of it for a long time.

You will learn more about how to deal with mole crickets in the video.

What is he afraid of?

To protect your garden from the invasion of mole crickets, you should regularly cultivate the soil and destroy them if nests are found.

If, before planting garden plants, you throw a clove of garlic, walnut leaves or coriander , and sprinkle the ground with crushed eggshells and another layer of soil, then this will most likely scare away the mole crickets.

You can plant marigold or chrysanthemum flowers between the rows, which will also prevent mole crickets from settling on the site.

From the end of May to June, it is recommended to loosen 10-15 cm depressions between the rows to ensure that mole cricket eggs are destroyed.

Greenhouses can be protected by digging grooves around them and filling them with sand soaked in kerosene.

Like most insects attracted to light, they are easily lured by lanterns at night. If you install a lantern against the wall, and place a basin with a mixture of kerosene and water below, then the mole crickets will fly into the light and die in the liquid when they land there.

From chemical agents, you can use special preparations like “Fenoxin Plus” , solutions of “Karbofos”, “Bankol”, “Grom”, “Bearcatcher”, “Medvetox”, “Rubit” and others.

Read more about how to get rid of mole crickets forever in this article.

Enemies

• Natural mole crickets are a favorite delicacy of moles, shrews, lizards and some birds (crows, rooks, starlings, herons and others). Thanks to them, the maximum that a mole cricket manages to eat in the garden is no more than 10% of the total harvest.
• Do moles eat mole crickets? Yes, mole crickets, like many other insects, are on the mole’s list of dishes.

Lifestyle

To better understand how to get rid of such a pest, a person must know the mole cricket’s lifestyle and habitat. The insect has several stages of development - from egg to adult (imago).

Mating and reproduction begins in May and lasts throughout the warm season. An adult cabbage butterfly lives up to one and a half years. In artificially created conditions, its life expectancy reaches 3 years. And the entire life cycle takes up to 5 years.

What does it eat?

Mole crickets are predators whose diet includes plant foods. Gardeners are actively interested in what mole crickets eat. They eat roots, roots, and the green part of plants above the soil.

They also feed on small insects, their larvae, and also earthworms. A special delicacy for them are the pupae of other insects, caterpillars or butterflies.

Taking into account the feeding characteristics, the mole cricket, on the one hand, is a beneficial insect. In the forest, it is responsible for loosening the soil and saturating it with oxygen, as well as for destroying harmful insects.

But on the other hand, it is a real pest, since in the beds it violates the integrity of the stems, damages the roots and root crops.

What is he afraid of?

Cabbage grass has natural enemies. It is eaten by many animals, it encounters various fungal diseases, and also turns out to be an intermediate link in the process of reproduction of other insects.

What is the mole cricket afraid of and who poses a danger to it:

• birds;
• rodents;
• insectivorous mammals;
• reptiles;
• amphibians;
• arachnids
• cats.

The number of mole crickets is decreasing due to fungal diseases. Bedbugs and wasps complicate the life of this insect. They parasitize on the cabbage plant, producing their own offspring (they lay their eggs on its body).

Where does it live?

The localization of various species is varied, but they are all united by where the mole cricket lives. For the winter, the insect goes deep into the ground. They build their nest at a depth of 2 m. They often settle under a pile of cow dung or directly in it.

It resumes its activity with the arrival of heat, when the soil warms up to +12 °C. In countries with warm climates, it causes pests all year round.

Does it bite or not?

Many people are concerned about whether mole crickets bite or not. For such manipulation, the insect must have a special structure of the oral apparatus. As a rule, it should have a piercing-sucking structure.

With their help, the insect gnaws roots, dense plant stems, and chews dense food. Its mouthparts are also equipped with a pair of tentacles that allow it to find and then hold food.

The insect cannot perform other manipulations with this apparatus. It is not intended for biting through skin. Plus, the mole cricket does not have such a need (it is not attracted to blood). Obviously, cabbage mushrooms do not bite.

In the process, it presses its limbs against the human hand, causing unpleasant painful sensations, which are sometimes perceived as a bite. But this is a common misconception.

The mole cricket is an insect that does not pose a threat to humans, but significantly harms almost all garden crops. Taking this into account, if such a parasite is discovered on your personal plot, it is necessary to take timely measures to eliminate it.

Unfounded fears

Danger of mole crickets for humans Fear has big eyes.
Seeing a strange creature of large size, you can think of anything you want. There is a version that the mole cricket is poisonous. You should avoid it and never pick it up. A mole cricket bite for a person can lead to increased body temperature, weakness, nausea, vomiting, headache, and other symptoms of intoxication. All this is a rich imagination. An insect cannot bite a person and does not strive to do so. Painful sensations on the hand are left by its forelimbs, which are equipped with claws. In appearance, they resemble the paws of a mole and are intended for loosening the soil and constructing tunnels.

On a note!

Finding itself in danger - in the hands of the person who caught it, the insect tries with all its might to free itself. In this state, the limbs are pressed against the hand, causing painful sensations that the person perceives as a bite.

Claims that the mole cricket bites are unfounded, but it is worth getting rid of pests on land.

Features of the bear

There are hardly many insects that can fly and live underground at the same time. And the bear is capable of this. True, she flies rarely and not high.

For the wings to function, they need heat - at least 24 degrees. This insect swims well; this must be taken into account when choosing ways to combat mole crickets in the garden.

Mole cricket with open wings

The Medvedka family, to which the insect belongs, is quite numerous and includes more than 110 species. They are found in almost all countries except Scandinavian ones.

Appearance

He is quite remarkable. Only the praying mantis can compare in size with the mole cricket.

Its body length is up to 8 cm. The smaller part of it is on the soft abdomen, which looks like a spindle.

Medvedka in the hands of a man

The mole cricket has cerci - two thread-like appendages extending from its end, these are the vestigial remains of the hind abdominal legs.

Their length is small - only 1 cm. Large compound eyes, antennae and a hard shell, which encloses the thoracic part of the body, make it look like a crayfish.

The mole cricket is capable of partially retracting its head into its shell, providing it with protection. The powerful gnawing mouthparts are equipped with a pair of tentacles.

The structure of the front and hind limbs is very different. The front pair looks like a mole's paws; it is with them that the mole cricket digs the ground.

Nest with mole cricket eggs

Most species have thin scaly wings, most often longer than the abdomen and elytra. The color of the insects is dark brown, slightly lighter on the abdomen. The mole cricket makes its nest at a depth of 15 cm.

It has numerous passages, ventilation holes and even windows. Eggs are laid in the deepest place.

Life cycle and nutrition

The development cycle of this pest is 2 years. Most often, adult individuals overwinter; they are able to burrow into the ground to a depth of 2 m.

The larvae of the first year of life also tolerate frosts. Mole crickets wake up when the soil warms up well, to at least 15 degrees.

Soon after emerging, the pests begin to mate. In order to lay eggs, the mole cricket requires an earthen chamber.

She arranges it at a depth of about 15 cm underground. The insect lays several piles of eggs, each with about 300 eggs. They have an elongated shape, yellow color with a brown or greenish tint.

The eggs are a quarter of a centimeter long and about 1 mm wide. Larvae appear from mid-June until almost the end of July.

Newly hatched larvae look like spiders. At first wingless, after each molt they grow little by little. The wings appear after 4 moults.

They grow slowly. An insect can have 5 to 10 molts. The entire development cycle of nymphs takes place underground.

Life cycle of a mole cricket

To prevent plants from shading oviposition sites, the insect gnaws their roots. It is the spot of wilted plants that is the easiest way to find the egg-laying of a mole cricket.

Its presence is also indicated by a characteristic chirping sound similar to the singing of a cricket. You can hear it in the evening or at night.

The mole cricket is a polyphagous animal and is able to feed on both insects and plants. The harm it causes to cultivated plants is considerable:

• eats up roots;
• eats seeds;
• nibbles seedlings;
• damages tubers.

Insects of all ages are equally voracious. If there is an assumption that the mole cricket has chosen its favorite beds to live in, it is worth thinking about how to remove the mole cricket from the garden. A couple of years will pass and the insects will simply have nowhere to go. You won’t have to count on a harvest anymore.

There are different ways to combat mole crickets in the garden. To get the desired effect, it is better to apply the experience accumulated over generations. To the question: how to remove a mole cricket from the garden, real advice from those who managed to cope with this problem will give a comprehensive answer.

How to get rid of a mole cricket?

For decades, people have been fighting this pest. There are known cases when, after being expelled from the site, he appeared again after a while. To prevent this from happening, before fighting the mole cricket, in the spring when cultivating the garden, it is important to carefully inspect the area for the presence of nests of this pest.

For prevention, you can also use various insecticides, which are available in abundance on the shelves of specialized stores. In this case, it is important to follow all recommendations and the algorithm for preparing the solution, which is indicated step by step in the instructions for the chemical preparation. To completely expel the pest, repeated use of the product is required.

How to get rid of mole crickets in the garden?

When talking about how to deal with mole crickets in the garden, it is necessary to note the regularity and cyclical nature of tillage procedures. The pest is highly resistant to insecticides, so many of them have to be used repeatedly in order to completely drive the mole cricket insect out of the area. As an example, here are several remedies that are mentioned when talking about how to remove mole crickets from the garden:

1. Poisoned baits - in places where mole crickets accumulate, when their nests are discovered in the spring, they are treated with a solution of anhydrous ammonia or ammonia water.
2. In the fall, ditches or holes up to 0.5 m deep are dug and filled with horse manure. With the first frosts, the manure is dug up, scattered and the mole crickets gathered in it are destroyed.
3. During the growing season of plants, the Grizzly insecticide is applied to the soil at the rate of 20 g per 10 sq.m.

How to get rid of mole crickets using folk remedies?

The common mole cricket is a shy insect, so catching it or luring it into a trap is not easy. Summer residents often fight the pest for several seasons and cannot completely drive it away from the site. Traditional methods are used. Some of them demonstrate high efficiency. Here are the most effective ones:

1. At the exit from the earthen passage, the mole crickets place pieces of roofing felt. The soil in this place is constantly moistened, and after a while, if the traps are raised, there will be numerous mole crickets under them, which are destroyed mechanically.
2. Places where a cluster of mole crickets is found are watered generously with diluted chicken droppings.
3. Plants are planted along the perimeter of the site, the smell of which repels the pest: marigolds, chrysanthemums, carnations.
4. When planting, ash and crushed shells are added to the hole with the plant.

Where did the name “Medvedka” come from?

Mole crickets got their name because of their appearance, large size, brown-brown color and clawed front paws. All this gave reason to compare this insect with a brown bear.

The mole cricket’s second name, “cabbage mole cricket,” comes from its love for young cabbage seedlings. But the third name “mole cricket” comes from the Latin “Gryllotalpa” (properly translated as “mole cricket”) and it is also not accidental. The mole cricket is similar to a cricket in its body structure and ability to make sounds, and it is similar to a mole in its ability to burrow into the ground and extended hands of the front paws, which help dig the ground.

Anatomical structure

The mole cricket is one of the pests in gardens and vegetable gardens. It is also called cabbage, top, earthen crustacean. The habitat of the mole cricket is manured and humus-rich gardens, greenhouses, next to ponds and fields with cereals. Often the mole cricket appears at night, in rare cases it is visible during the day.

Externally, the insect is large in size, it has an elongated body of a yellowish-green hue with golden-brown markings. The belly of the individual is olive-yellow, short leathery transparent wings with many veins. The wings, when folded, extend their veins beyond the body. The mole cricket has 6 legs, they are short and powerful in front, they have spines, with which she digs. Therefore, the question often arises whether mole crickets bite.

The insect looks like a crayfish or a locust. The body of the individual is powerful, so when you pick it up, it will immediately begin to squirm, trying to free itself, but not bite.

Many people believe that it should not be picked up by hand, since a mole cricket bite can have a negative impact on health.

1. The temperature will rise.
2. A gag reflex will appear.
3. A headache will occur.
4. The human body will be weakened.
5. Other signs appearing due to a deadly toxic substance entering the bloodstream.

insect anatomy

But anyone who believes that the mole cricket is poisonous and will bite is mistaken. The insect is not capable of biting or piercing human skin. Painful sensations are experienced from its front paws, which have characteristic pointed teeth. Thanks to the teeth, the root crop pest digs into the soil, affecting the root structure. At the same time, the claws and mouthparts are not endowed with powerful muscles that can damage the skin, which refutes the fact that the crustacean bites.

When the top sits in your arms out of fear of danger, it tries to free itself by any means. Biting, pinching his enemy with his paws, he leans against his hand. If pain occurs as a result, most people believe that the insect will bite.

Therefore, whether an individual can bite or not, the answer is negative.

Types of mole crickets

There are several different species that practically do not differ from each other: they have the same lifestyle, taste preferences and appearance. The difference can only be noticed if you examine their chromosome set. There are about 110 species in total, among the known ones are the following:

• The common one is one of the largest groups that is widespread in Europe. Damages all types of grains and agricultural crops.
• African - grows up to 3.5 cm, body color is dark yellow, closer to brown. The abdomen is light yellow. It has small thread-like antennae.
• Ten-fingered - the species is widely represented in the USA and Canada. The size is from 2 to 3.5 cm. In its natural habitat it has an enemy - the ground wasp, it penetrates the mink and paralyzes with its sting.
• The Far Eastern mole cricket is morphologically close to the common mole cricket and is distributed in China, Vietnam, Japan and the Sakhalin region.
• Single-spike - differs from other species in that the thickness of its body is narrower, and the front wings have not very pronounced transverse veins. The length of a mature individual reaches 4.5 cm.

And the steppe mole cricket, which lives in the south of Russia, Ukraine and a number of other countries, is also quite famous.