Buzz
Are you tired of making frequent trips to the pet store to purchase crickets for your scaly, wiggly, or furry companion? If you're an avid do-it-yourself enthusiast, consider delving into the world of cricket cultivation, providing a convenient and cost-effective source of crickets right from the comfort of your home.
Initial Steps
Commencing the Process
Acquire multiple spacious containers or tanks. You'll require adequate containers or tanks to house your cricket population. It's advisable to have at least two containers—one for breeding adults and another for developing young crickets. Determine the desired cricket quantity and invest in containers of appropriate size.
- Ensure the container or tank provides ample space for your cricket colony. A common oversight in cricket rearing is underestimating the container size. Crickets confined in tight spaces may resort to cannibalism due to resource competition, an undesirable outcome. Opt for a sufficiently large tank to avoid such issues!
- Opt for a transparent tote bin with a secure lid for containing the crickets. Plastic storage boxes with high sides are popular choices. A 14-gallon (53 L) container can accommodate a colony exceeding 500 crickets, provided with adequate cardboard or egg crates for climbing. Smooth-surfaced tote bins minimize escape incidents.
Ensure proper ventilation in your containers. Create one or two 6' holes in the tote bin lid to facilitate air circulation. Use a metal mosquito screen to cover the openings and prevent cricket escapes, as they can gnaw through plastic screens. Secure the screen in place with a hot glue gun. For added temperature control, consider experimenting with adjustable vents.
Line the container floor with vermiculite. Add 1-3' of vermiculite to the bottom of the tote bin. This substrate provides a dry surface for crickets to walk on, minimizing bacterial growth and odors. For dense cricket colonies, replace the vermiculite every 1-6 months to maintain cleanliness.
Introduce a moistened container of loose topsoil to the tote bin. Females require this substrate for egg deposition. Ensure the topsoil level is slightly elevated compared to the vermiculite to allow cricket access. Use fertilizer- and pesticide-free topsoil.
- Consider adding a screen atop the soil surface to prevent cricket disturbance or egg consumption. Females can deposit eggs through the screen using their ovipositor.
Purchase 50 or more crickets. Acquire sufficient crickets to sustain your pet, with an additional 30-50 for breeding purposes. Maintain a balanced ratio of male to female crickets, preferably favoring females.
- Females possess three elongated projections at their rear, with the primary one (ovipositor) used for egg deposition. Fully developed wings are characteristic of female crickets.
- Male crickets feature two projections and possess shorter, underdeveloped wings utilized for producing the familiar nighttime chirping.
Initiating the Breeding Process
Introduce your cricket colony and provide nourishment. Transfer all crickets into the designated container. Place a shallow dish of commercial cricket food or a suitable substitute, like crushed dry cat food, away from the soil.
- Supplement their diet with fruits, vegetables, and other treats, ensuring timely removal of uneaten fresh foods to prevent spoilage.
- Consider offering unconventional foods such as tropical fish flakes, pond fish pellets, or rabbit food to diversify their diet and enhance their nutritional value.
- Vary their diet regularly to maintain cricket health, directly benefiting your pets' well-being.
Provide ample water for your crickets. Crickets require constant access to water for survival. Observe their response to misting, which prompts them to flock to water sources within the container. Consider innovative hydration methods:
- Install an inverted bottle reptile water dispenser with a sponge to prevent flooding or drowning.
- Create a makeshift water source using absorbent paper wrapped around a cardboard roll.
- Offer a dish of water gel or unflavored gelatin as an alternative hydration option.
Maintain optimal warmth for your crickets. Ensure a warm environment to facilitate breeding and egg incubation. Employ various heating methods such as reptile heaters, heating pads, or light bulbs. Consider placing a space heater in a closet to provide uniform warmth, aiding cricket breeding.
- Males chirp for breeding purposes within a temperature range of 55–100 °F (13–38 °C). Crickets thrive in temperatures ranging between 80–90 °F (27–32 °C).
Allow time for cricket breeding. With adequate provisions of food, water, and warmth, your crickets should breed prolifically. Provide approximately two weeks for breeding and egg laying in the soil. Afterward, relocate the topsoil containing the eggs to a separate container for incubation.
- Maintain dampness in the topsoil to prevent egg desiccation, as dried-out eggs are non-viable. Periodically mist the topsoil with filtered water to prevent complete dehydration.
Concluding the Breeding Process
Incubate the eggs. Provide warmth for the eggs' incubation until hatching. Position the disposable container within a larger sealed container in an environment with a temperature of 85–90 °F (29–32 °C). After approximately two weeks (longer in cooler conditions), the eggs will hatch, releasing pinhead crickets resembling grains of sand, numbering in the hundreds daily for about two weeks.
Harvest the pinhead crickets and transfer them to a rearing container. Ensure the rearing container is equipped with food and water to facilitate the growth of the juvenile crickets until they reach an appropriate size for reintroduction into the main container, typically within 7-10 days.
- Regularly moisten the soil in the rearing container to ensure adequate hydration for the crickets.
- Consider placing the rearing container atop a heating pad set to 80–90 °F (27–32 °C) for optimal conditions.
Repeat the process. Following the aforementioned steps with the newly bred crickets will yield abundant numbers, sufficient to feed your pet and potentially others'. Soon, you'll become a seasoned cricket farmer! If encountering cricket mortality, focus on the following aspects:
- Ensure adequate space for the crickets to inhabit and breed, preventing overcrowding-induced cannibalism.
- Maintain appropriate hydration levels by regular misting and refilling water reservoirs, avoiding overwatering.
- Maintain optimal temperatures between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit for thriving cricket populations.
Useful Tips
- For calcium-demanding pets, feed crickets calcium-rich foods like spinach or cheese. Address vitamin deficiencies by providing fruits such as oranges. Remember, what you feed your crickets impacts your pet's diet.
- Prevent escapes by applying a strip of clear packing tape inside the tote, rendering it too slippery for crickets to climb.
- Crickets breathe through spiracles, small openings on their bodies. Ensure adequate space to prevent respiratory issues.
Important Cautions
- Keep an eye out for pests such as mold, mites, flies, and bacteria infiltrating your cricket colony. Take necessary measures to prevent and eradicate these pests to maintain a healthy cricket population.
- A breeding population of 50 crickets can yield over 2000 pinhead crickets during their breeding cycle, potentially leading to an abundance of crickets.
- Upon hatching, pinhead crickets are as small as grains of sand. Ensure they remain contained within their enclosure, as they typically cannot climb glass or clear plastic surfaces.
- Male crickets can produce significant noise when chirping. Consider housing them in areas where their noise won't be bothersome.
- Use only pesticide and fertilizer-free topsoil to prevent poisoning of crickets, their eggs, and any pets.
- If you have a cat, they may enjoy hunting or consuming crickets, which can be harmless unless consumed in excess.
- Maintain moderate humidity levels. While providing a water dish for drinking, avoid excessive humidity to minimize cricket mortality, mold, mites, and flies.
- Expect a few crickets to escape eventually. If you prefer to avoid having crickets roam freely in your home, set up traps to contain them.
