You’d Better Bait

Posted on: 11 November 2020

If you've never seen a Jerusalem cricket before, you might be shocked to see one crawling across your kitchen floor. These insects are large with a frightening appearance, so you have every reason to be alarmed. While you're more likely to encounter a Jerusalem cricket outside, they sometimes come indoors in search of shelter, food, and water. Here are some tips for dealing with Jerusalem crickets.

Call a Pest Control Company to Identify the Insect

You may have no idea if the weird insect you see is dangerous. If you can't identify the Jerusalem cricket, then call a pest control company for help. They can let you know what kind of bug you're dealing with and explain some facts about the bug as well as give advice on how to get rid of them.

One thing you'll want to know is that these bugs can bite. They're not aggressive, and they don't attack, but if you try to pick one up and the insect feels threatened, it might bite in self-defense, and their bites are painful. Although you'll feel pain, you don't have to worry about their bites being venomous.

Remove Occasional Jerusalem Crickets Manually

If you just see an occasional Jerusalem cricket in your house, you can pick it up by placing a glass over it and sliding a thin piece of cardboard under the glass to capture the insect. Don't pick the cricket up with your bare hands or you might get a bite. You can then release the insect outdoors where it normally lives.

Use Glue Traps When You See Several Crickets

Jerusalem crickets don't really pose much of a problem, and they're beneficial to the environment. However, you probably don't want them in your home, especially if you have kids or pets that might get bitten. The pest control company might suggest placing glue traps around your house to see how many insects you catch so you get an idea of the extent of the problem. You might eliminate the crickets in your house with glue traps alone.

Keep the Insects Outside

The pest control company can offer advice on changing the habitat around your home so Jerusalem crickets aren't drawn to your house. The insects normally live under the ground where it's moist. If the ground becomes dry, the insects will go in search of damp places. This can drive them inside your home or near your house where you might have damp mulch.

Try to keep a dry perimeter around your house, and take steps to seal entry points where the insects can sneak inside. If you can keep the insects outdoors, they shouldn't pose much of a problem. In large numbers, they can destroy crops in the field, and they might get in your garden, but you can probably coexist peacefully with Jerusalem crickets if you can keep them out of your house.