Cricket song is a sound of the Australian bush. Even in cities, the rasping calls signify Australia’s remarkable cricket biodiversity. Crickets are notable for a variety of reasons. When their population booms, some of these species become agricultural pests and destroy crop pastures. Some introduced species are of biosecurity concern. Other crickets are important food sources for native birds, reptiles and mammals, as well as domestic pets. Soon you might even put them in your cake or stir-fry, as there is a rapidly growing industry for cricket products for human consumption. Featuring keys, distribution maps, illustrations and detailed colour photographs from CSIRO’s Australian National Insect Collection, A Guide to Crickets of Australia allows readers to reliably identify all 92 described genera and many species from the Grylloidea (true crickets) and Gryllotalpoidea (mole crickets and ant crickets) superfamilies. Not included are the Raspy Crickets (Gryllacrididae), King Crickets (Anostostomatidae) or the so-called ‘Pygmy Mole Crickets’ (Caelifera), which despite their common names are not related to true crickets. Natural history enthusiasts and professionals will find this an essential guide.

This work began with 12 months of field work in Australia between June 1968 & June 1969. During approx. 46,000 miles of travel the authors obtained data at 905 different localities, & visited all of the major Australian collections. Material in the European museums was examined on the return trip to the U.S. & many types were borrowed later. The National Insect Collection at Canberra subsequently sent their entire collection of crickets for further study & the Univ. of Queensland sent a major part of their collection. This work includes 492 species of which 376 are new. These species are arranged in 85 genera of which 41 are new. Fourteen previously published names are synonymized & 17 names are treated as ¿nomina dubia.¿ Illustrations.

This book covers a broad range of topics about the cricket from its development, regeneration, physiology, nervous system, and behavior with remarkable recent updates by adapting the new, sophisticated molecular techniques including RNAi and other genome editing methods. It also provides detailed protocols on an array of topics and for basic experiments on the cricket.While the cricket has been one of the best models for neuroethological studies over the past 60 years, it has now become the most important system for studying basal hemimetabolous insects. The studies of Gryllus and related species of cricket will yield insight into evolutionary features that are not evident in other insect model systems, which mainly focus on holometabolous insects such as Drosophila, Tribolium, and Bombyx. Research on crickets and grasshoppers will be important for the development of pest-control strategies, given that some of the most notorious pests also belong to the order Orthoptera. At the same time, crickets possess an enormously high “food conversion efficiency”, making them a potentially important food source for an ever-expanding human population.This volume provides a comprehensive source of information as well as potential new applications in pest management and food production of the cricket. It will inspire scientists in various disciplines to use the cricket model system to investigate interesting and innovative questions.

Most of the 170 species of grasshoppers and crickets included in this book can be identified instantly by their songs – and often more reliably than from their appearance. Orthopterans have recently become important subjects in evolutionary biological studies and are also increasingly used in the field of conservation as indicators of undisturbed habitat. The book comprises the following chapters: Introduction; Acoustic Methods; Sound Production and Reception of European Orthoptera; The Nature and Function of the Songs; The Value of the Songs in Taxonomy and Identification; Key to the singing Orthoptera of Western Europe, based primarily on their Songs; and other Animal Sounds that could be confused with Orthoptera Songs – illustrated with over 1600 oscillograms; three Appendixes (Check-list of the species included; Summary of Nomenclatural Changes; Data for the Song Recordings); Glossary; References; Index to Vernacular Names; and General Index.

This text brings together fundamental information on insect taxa, morphology, ecology, behavior, physiology, and genetics. Close relatives of insects, such as spiders and mites, are included.