Lesson LXXXII

The Black Cricket

Leading thought—The crickets are among the most famous of the insect musicians. They live in the fields under stones and in burrows, and feed upon grass and clover. As with the song birds, the male only makes music; he has his wing-covers developed into a mandolin or violin, which he plays to attract his mate and also for his own pleasure.

Method—Make some cricket cages as follows: Take a small flower-pot and plant in it a root of fresh grass or clover. Place over this and press well into the soil a lantern or lamp chimney. Cover the top with mosquito netting. Place the pot in its saucer, so that it may be watered by keeping the saucer filled. Ask the pupils to collect some crickets. In each cage, place a male and one or more females, the latter being readily distinguished by the long ovipositors. Place the cages in a sunny window, where the pupils may observe them at recess, and ask for the following observations. In studying the cricket closely, it may be well to put one in a vial and pass it around. In observing the crickets eat, it is well to give them a piece of sweet apple or melon rind, as they are very fond of pulpy fruits.

Observations—1. Is the covering of the cricket shining, like black patent leather, or is it dull? What portions are dull? Of what use do you think it is to the cricket to be so smoothly polished?

2. Where did you find the crickets? When you tried to catch them, how did they act? Did they fly like grasshoppers or did they run and leap?

3. Look carefully at the cricket’s legs. Which is the largest of the three pairs? Of what use are these strong legs? Look carefully at the tibia of the hind leg. Can you see the strong spines at the end, just behind the foot or tarsus? Watch the cricket jump and see if you can discover the use of these spines. How many joints in the tarsus? Has the cricket a pad like the grasshopper’s between its claws? When the cricket walks or jumps does it walk on all the tarsus of each pair of legs?

4. Study the cricket’s head. Can you see the eyes? Describe the antennæ—their color, length, and the way they are used. Watch the cricket clean its antennæ and describe the process. Can you see the little feelers, or palpi, connected with the mouth? How many are there? How does it use these feelers in tasting food before it eats? Watch the cricket eat, and see whether you can tell whether its mouth is made for biting or sucking.

5. Study the wings. Are the wings of the mother cricket the same size and shape as those of her mate? How do they differ? Does the cricket have any wings under these front wings, as the grasshopper does? Note the cricket when he is playing his wing mandolin to attract his mate. How does he make the noise? Can you see the wings vibrate? Ask your teacher to show you a picture of the musical wings of the cricket, or to show you the wings themselves under the microscope, so that you may see how the music is made.

6. Why does the mother cricket need such a long ovipositor? Where does she put her eggs in the fall to keep them safe until spring?

7. Look in the tibia, or elbow, of the front leg for a little white spot. What do you suppose this is? Are there any white spots like it on the other legs? Ask your teacher to tell you what this is.

8. Can you find the homes of the crickets in the fields? Do the black crickets chirp in the day-time or after dark? Do they chirp in cold or windy weather, or only when the sun shines?

Supplementary Reading—Grasshopper Land, Morley, Chapter XIX.

CRICKET SONG.

Welcome with thy clicking, cricket!
Clicking songs of sober mirth;
Autumn, stripping field and thicket,
Brings thee to my hearth,
Where thy clicking shrills and quickens,
While the mist of twilight thickens.

No annoy, good-humored cricket,
With thy trills is ever blent;
Spleen of mine, how dost thou trick it
To a calm content?
So, by thicket, hearth, or wicket,
Click thy little lifetime, cricket!

Bayard Taylor.