Fall Field Cricket vs Black Cutworm

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Fall Field Cricket Black Cutworm
Scientific Name Gryllus pennsylvanicus Agrotis ipsilon
Order Orthoptera Lepidoptera
Family Gryllidae Noctuidae
Size 15-25 mm 40-55 mm wingspan
Habitat Underground Indoors
Diet Seed Feeders Seed Feeders
Regions Eastern North America Worldwide
Conservation Least Concern Not Evaluated

Fall Field Cricket

A common North American black field cricket whose chirping is the quintessential sound of autumn. Adults appear in late summer and die with the first hard frost.

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Did You Know?

You can estimate the temperature in Fahrenheit by counting its chirps in 14 seconds and adding 40.

Black Cutworm

A dull brown moth whose soil-dwelling caterpillars sever young seedlings at ground level during the night. It is a cosmopolitan pest that migrates long distances.

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Did You Know?

Cutworm caterpillars curl into a C-shape when disturbed, a diagnostic behavior for identifying them in soil.