What is this?
Location: North Eastern Washington, US
June 5, 2011 11:08 am
I was relocating some wild strawberries, when I came across this big fat little guy. The area he was found in was damp and dark in a heavily weeded spot. I live in a mountainous area with lots of pine trees. It’s June, middle of spring. I don’t know if you can see well enough from the pictures, but I’ve noticed that most cricket’s hind legs are usually long, with the leg’s bend raised up higher than the body. This guy’s hind legs are shorter than the average cricket. He’s got the hair/frills or spikes on the front legs like a cricket would. His body is very fat! He was about 2 inches in length. He’s wasn’t aggressive or defensive in any way. I was able to pet him! Your help in identifying is grately appreciated!
Signature: Khaadim
Great Grig
Dear Khaadim,
We believe this is a Great Grig, which goes by the intimidating scientific name Cyphoderris monstrosa. If you look at the images on BugGuide, we believe you will agree with us. BugGuide describes the habitat as “coniferous forests containing Lodgepole Pine, Englemann Spruce, and Mountain Hemlock; adults hide beneath leaf litter during the day, and become active at night, climbing tree trunks and continuing high into the branches to feed, sing (males), and mate” and that fits your description.
¶ Posted 05 June 2011 § ‡ ° Jerusalem Cricket/Potato Bug
Location: Spokane, WA
October 2, 2010 2:48 am
Hello! Thanks to your website, I was able to identify a bug I’ve seen several times in my life, and seriously creeped out by.
I clean an elementary school in a rural area, and always find them in the tiled bathrooms far from any outside doors. I wonder what it is they are looking for…water? Somewhere cool?
These are very hearty creatures I have also discovered. One time, visiting in the Sierra Mountains, I got up in the morning to put on my shoes. A bit later I realized I had a rather uncomfortable rock in my shoe, but was unable to stop what I was doing to remove. Roughly half hour later, I pulled off my shoe and slapped the heel into the palm of my hand catching a really angry Jerusalem Cricket. I then promptly flipped out completely, flinging the insect in the air and released a piercing scream. I was completely taken by surprise something that size survived under my foot. Since that day, I have to say, it’s been on my mind what that insect was.
Thanks again for the great site with the awesome information!
Corey
Spokane,Washington
Signature: Corey Douglas
Great Grig
Hi Corey,
Jerusalem Crickets and your insect, a Great Grig, Cyphoderris monstrosa, are all in the same suborder Ensifera, the Longhorned Orthopterans, but they are in different families. The Great Grig has a much more limited range, as it is only found in the Pacific Northwest. According to BugGuide, Great Grigs are found in: “coniferous forests containing Lodgepole Pine, Englemann Spruce, and Mountain Hemlock; adults hide beneath leaf litter during the day, and become active at night, climbing tree trunks and continuing high into the branches to feed, sing (males), and mate.”
¶ Posted 02 October 2010 § ‡ ° Bug Identification
October 14, 2009
Photographed this bug found on my tent tarp in the morning. I was camping in early July in Kootenay National Park in the Marble Canyon campground.
The bug was about 2 inches long and remained motionless even as we tried to move it from the tarp.
Thank you! Katherine
British Columbia, Rockies
Mormon Cricket
Hi Katherine,
This is a Mormon Cricket, Anabrus simplex, a species of Shield Backed Katydid.
Correction from Eric Eaton
Daniel:
The “Mormon cricket” from British Columbia is actually a different insect altogether. It is one of the “hump-winged grigs” in the genus Cyphoderris. They represent an entire family by themselves (Prophalangopsidae). Neat find.
Eric
¶ Posted 14 October 2009 § ‡ ° A question about … a bug!
Great site … say I, as I type on a keyboard graced by a dead ‘Longhorn’ of some description (found by my wife in the innards of a malfunctioning microwave and left here for my admiration, no doubt). I have a picture or two for you and, probably, an easy one for you to identify … “just a dumb old cricket” the opinion of one secretary I had hoped to gross out, totally unimpressed by my find. Not like any cricket I ever saw though (I grew up back east where they are all black and have flatter bodies and larger, more angulated hind legs). And we never hear the chirping of crickets around here either … “here” being west-central Alberta, in the heart of the Canadian Rockies.. Anyway – this specimen was found in, floating near the bottom in, a full water trough one morning. I went down to feed the ponies and this beast was only about one inch off the bottom and lifeless. I scooped it out but caried it around while doing the rest of the chores, hoping to identify it later or show it to someone who could. Eventually, about half an hour later, when showing it to someone, it had grabbed onto my fingers and wouldn’t let go. So – I did the befriend-a-bug thing, took it’s picture and let it go. (There must be some award on this site for such gallantry – though I could as easily fill your ‘carnage’ pages.) Any definitive I.D. on this one? (Sorry for the unintended use of the flash but I had let it go before I realized what it had done to the pictures.) … and how long can they survive under water, anyway … or would he have had brain damage?
Terry in Alberta
Hi Terry,
This is a Grig, a Hump Winged Cricket. It is a member of a family found in the Pacific Northwest. Sorry, we can’t answer your questions about drowning or brain damage.
¶ Posted 27 September 2007 § ‡ ° Robot Bug
Hello Bugman,
A bunch of my friends and I saw this bug (I’m guessing it’s some kind of cricket) while camping in the Mt. Hood National Forest in Oregon. It kind of has scales like an armadillo and moves like a machine. The picture doesn’t do it justice, it’s incredibly shiny like it’s made of gold. Thanks,
dena
Hi Dena,
This is a Grig, a Hump-Winged Cricket in the genus Cyphoderris. They are found in the Pacific Northwest. We would like to think this is Cyphoderris monstrosa, the Great Grig or Monster Haglid, but it might be one of the other two members of the genus. Grigs are found in coniferous forests and you can look to BugGuide for additional information.
¶ Posted 22 September 2007 § ‡ ° British Columbia Insect
We found the attached bug in a campsite in a pine forest near Princeton, BC. It was about an inch long, and when we poked it (gently, of course), it flipped onto its back. In the hour or so we watched it, it didn’t move at all, aside from the backflips. I’ve tried to identify it online, but the closest match I’ve been able to find is a Mormon cricket, and this one looks slightly different and doesn’t have the long ovipositor. Any ideas what it might be? Thanks very much,
Chris
Hi Chris,
This is a wonderful contribution to our site. This creature is a Great Grig, Cyphoderris monstrosa. Grigs are in the family Prophalangopsidae, the Hump Winged Crickets. They are in the suborder Ensifera or Long Horned Orthopterans that includes Katydids, Potato Bugs, and Crickets, but taxonomically, they are a distinct group. We have only received one other photo in the past, and it has been alone on our Grig page until now.
¶ Posted 28 July 2007 § ‡ ° An intruder in my tent
This one was in my tent at Wilcox Creek Campsite in the Canadian Rockies, in mid-August. It moved quite slowly and did not attempt to fly. The nearest thing I have found on the web is a rove beetle, but nothing matches completely. Can you help…..
We found your Great Grig, Cyphoderris monstrosa, on BugGuide. Elsewhere on BugGuide, Eric Eaton refers to it as a Humpbacked Grig and states: “They are most closely related to katydids and crickets, but are in a family all to themselves (Prophalangopsidae). The genus is Cyphoderris.” Your letter was a good reason to create a brand new page for our site.
¶ Posted 25 August 2006 § ‡ ° 
rss
I like This
