Dark Jerusalem Cricket

This is my first update since moving to California, and I wanted to share an insect that is native to this area that we do not have in Texas.  The Dark Jerusalem Cricket (Stenopelmatus fuscus) eats insects, roots, decomposing vegetation, and other plant matter.  It is native to the Western US and Mexico, and can be found under rocks and logs.  They are active in late afternoons and evenings during the seasons of fall and winter.

They are known a potato bugs, Niño de la tierra (child of the earth). and earth baby.  The are called these names because they live in the ground.

A Jerusalem cricket can be identified by its plump abdomen, which has black and white stripes.  It is a large wingless cricket, with legs adapted for burrowing.  It has an over-sized head and thorax.

They are not venomous, but emit a foul smell and can inflict a painful bite.