Spider cricket are challenging louse that often surprise homeowners with their foresightful , spindly legs and sudden jumps . Do n’t revere , though ; they might look a bit creepy-crawly , but these animal are harmless and do not bite humans .
What Are Spider Crickets?
Spider crickets – also known as cave crickets , cave wētā , land shrimp , sand treaders , jump , and camel cricket – generally refer to a family of louse known as Rhaphidophoridae . They ’re comprised of at least 1,100 mintage and are distributed across every continent on the Earth except Antarctica ( the freak continent ) .
mintage change slightly in appearance , but they are all wingless , have foresightful antennae , and have large hind legs that enable them to derail significant distance . The most common genus in North America isCeuthophilus .
They ’re typically found in caves , burrow , cellars , and under logs , favour dark and humid environments . This is why you’re able to occasionally come across wanderer crickets in a basement or old buildings .
Another species of spider cricket, Pachyrhamma edwardsii, pictured in New Zealand.Image credit:Mary Morgan-Richards/Wikimedia Commons(CC BY-SA 4.0)
Research has shownthat wanderer crickets are essentially cave - home scavenger that will wipe out anything , from peanut butter and jelly to rancid liver and American cheese .
Despite their sobriquet , they are not spiders – they are insects . spider arearachnids , so they do n’t even fit in with the taxonomical family of Insecta . On the other hired man , Rhaphidophoridae are firmly in the bracket of Insecta , equip in with the same rescript asgrasshoppers , locusts , and other crickets .
If you think they look like a prehistoric relic from the age of the dinosaurs , you ’re not wrong . A2024 studyfound thatRhaphidophoridaeoriginated 138 million year ago throughout the Pangea supercontinent . As the landmasses moved aside , unlike lineages of Rhaphidophoridae evolved on each continent , flourishing into the various group we still today .
So , it ’s likely that dinosaurs walk side - by - side with an ancient ancestor of spider crickets . feed their antediluvian features , it ’s likely they have n’t changed too much from this time . The same 2024 study argued that this kinsperson evolved winglessness in reaction to the low-toned temperatures in the Mesozoic epoch .
Are spider crickets dangerous?
No , spider crickets are not dangerous . They do have a propensity to jump forthwith at things that galvanise them , like a human move box seat in their basement . This is a defense mechanism designed to frighten potential predators . It might give you a scare , but they ’re fairly harmless to humans as they do n’t have fang or a venomous bite .
How to get rid of a spider cricket
If you need to get rid of spider crickets , theFarmers ’ Almanachas this advice :
Indoors :
alfresco :
