Black Field Cricket vs Weta

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Black Field Cricket Weta
Scientific Name Teleogryllus commodus Deinacrida heteracantha
Order Orthoptera Orthoptera
Family Gryllidae Anostostomatidae
Size Body 25-30 mm 70-100 mm (body only)
Habitat Farmland Caves
Diet Seed Feeders Fruit Feeders
Regions Australia, New Zealand Oceania
Conservation Least Concern Vulnerable

Black Field Cricket

A common black cricket whose chirping song is a familiar sound of Australian summer nights. It is widespread across Australia and has been introduced to New Zealand.

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Did You Know?

Females choose mates based on the quality and complexity of the male's chirping song.

Weta

Giant insects endemic to New Zealand, some of the heaviest in the world. Wetapunga can weigh up to 70 grams. Living fossils that have remained virtually unchanged for 190 million years.

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Did You Know?

The giant weta is so heavy it cannot jump — weighing up to 70 grams (heavier than a mouse), it is one of the heaviest insects on Earth and a living fossil from the age of dinosaurs.