Asian camel crickets are being commonly found in homes across the United States. Camel crickets eat a wide range of creatures, and are scavengers that will consume their own kind.
Diestrammena asynamora, also called cave crickets, are native to Asia, but they are invading human dwellings across the eastern United States. They are now more common than domestic camel crickets on the Atlantic Coast.
Large hind legs on the insect provide the species with a unique look that can frighten people who come across the animals in their homes.
"The good news is that camel crickets don't bite or pose any kind of threat to humans," Mary Jane Epps, a postdoctoral student at North Carolina State University (NC State), said.
An Asian camel cricket was spotted in the home of an NC State researcher by a cricket taxonomist. This accidental discovery led to a study of the invasive species along the Atlantic Coast of the United States.
Members of the public were asked to identify camel crickets in their homes, taking pictures of the animals when possible. Some participants provided physical specimens to the researchers. These requests were managed through the Your Wild Life lab, a network of citizen scientists.
Greenhouse camel crickets, also known as Diestrammena asynamora, were the most commonly reported species, found in the homes of 90 percent of respondents. These crickets first arrived in the United States from Asia during the 19th century. Until this study was released, most researchers believed the species were usually found just within greenhouses, earning the animals their popular name.
North Carolina State University researchers studied crickets in yards near 10 houses in Raleigh, N.C. They found greenhouse camel crickets were common in the residential properties, and congregated in greater numbers near homes.
Photos sent in by the public revealed another species, Diestrammena japanica, which was never previously recorded in the United States. Biologists will be unable to confirm whether or not the crickets seen in the images are actually the unusual variety.
Citizen scientists from 39 states in the study submitted over 2,000 responses to the research team. The crickets were found in 28 percent of Eastern states, but just 7 percent of states west of the Mississippi. This could translate to 700 million camel crickets in the eastern United States.
"We don't know what kind of impact this species has on local ecosystems, though it's possible that the greenhouse camel cricket could be driving out native camel cricket species in homes," Epps said.
Investigation of invasive crickets was detailed in the online journal PeerJ.
