By Kristy Volmert | Staff Writer
Field cricket season is stirring in Waco as an army of insects multiplies. They are heard untimely chirping all day and seen lounging on the sidewalks, dead or alive, but their favorite place appears to be the outskirts of Penland Hall.
According to the Great Plains Nature Center, the drops in temperature and rainy weather are drawing crickets to their mating season, typically at its peak during the months of August and September and often extending into early October. They congregate in dark, damp areas during the daytime and are out and about at night. Favoring tight spaces attracts them into air vents and drains, often causing their occasional appearance indoors.
Their unpleasant invasion can be expected during this time of year, but it’s especially extensive this fall as cold fronts bring weather changes earlier than usual.
Because they cannot grow and survive during the colder seasons, crickets lay their eggs during late summer in groups of about 200-400 eggs at a time. Those eggs will remain dormant in the soil until April or May, when they hatch and release nymphs. These nymphs, which are smaller, premature versions of adult crickets, feed on plants and other materials as they grow. In about 90 days, they will have matured into adults and grown wings, just in time for mating season.
The loud chirping results from a mechanism called stridulation, where males rub their wings together to make this sound and attract females, who are mute and do not have wings.
Some questions spark curiosity for many on the Baylor campus. Where do all of these crickets come from? Where do they lay their eggs, and why haven’t we seen any of the nymphs? Dr. Elizabeth Pitts is the Genetics Lab coordinator in Baylor’s biology department and said she wonders the same thing.
“It’s interesting to see all of these grown, adult crickets lurking around, but I haven’t seen a single premature one,” Pitts said. “I’m very curious as to where these eggs were hiding during the months in which we didn’t see the crickets.”
Pitts said that the crickets should begin to fade out in the next month as fall begins, and some of their predators such as frogs, crows and spiders will likely take over the rest of the remaining population.
An abundance of crows seen around campus can also be explained by the cricket influx, as they are busy chasing after their prey. The reason why they have decided to nest around Penland is unclear. What is clear, however, is that students are not happy with these unpleasant encounters.
Sugar Land freshman and Penland resident Gracie Peschel thinks the critters are a big nuisance.
“They swarm down the alley right past the dining hall, and if you ever pass by there, you will see at least one person screaming and running away,” Peschel said.
The crickets don’t just lurk outside. They seem to enjoy taunting Penland residents wherever they go. According to Peschel, they are also sighted in the lobby, in the dining hall and everywhere else.
“Two days ago ,my roommate came into our room with a cricket on her arm, unbeknownst to her, and now we have a cricket somewhere in our room,” Peschel said.
The problem of crickets within dorms isn’t exclusive to just Penland.
Richmond freshman Abby Bray, a resident of University Parks, said that they make their presence known at her apartment complex as well.
“I’ve opened my door in the morning and a cricket flies at my face,” Bray said.
According to Bray, they can also be found crawling through the halls of the Marrs McLean Sciences Building.
“They don’t understand personal space,” Bray said.
Students will be relieved that this notorious cricket season is soon coming to an end, as the long-awaited fall weather sets in.
“I know a lot of people find the crickets annoying,” Peschel said. “Personally, I like to step on them.”
