Differences Between Crickets and Katydids and Their Rearing Characteristics

Crickets and katydids are both familiar singing insects. Taxonomically they both belong to the order Orthoptera, yet they belong to different families. The cricket is actually the common name for insects of the family Gryllidae, mostly dark brown in body color and relatively small in size, often active in soil crevices, along wall bases, and among grass; the katydid generally refers to insects of the family Tettigoniidae, mainly green in body color and larger in size, mostly dwelling on plant stems and leaves.

The most intuitive difference between the two lies in their appearance and living habits. The cricket has a flat, sturdy body, with most hind wings degenerated, and mainly moves by crawling and short-distance jumping, with a thin, rapid chirp; the katydid has a slender body, is good at climbing, and has a loud, melodious call that sounds especially clear on summer and autumn nights. It should be noted that only males can produce sound, and both produce sound in the same way, by rubbing their left and right forewings together.

In terms of diet, crickets are more omnivorous, often nibbling tender shoots and grass roots in fields and also feeding on other small organisms; although katydids also eat plants, they take a greater interest in small insects and have a stronger predatory ability. Since ancient times, there has been a folk tradition of keeping these two singing insects for appreciation; crickets are used in cricket-fighting activities because they are combative, while katydids are mostly kept in cages to listen to their song.

The requirements for rearing the two differ slightly. Crickets prefer shady, damp environments and can be housed individually in clay jars or cricket boxes, padded with some moist soil and plant stems and leaves; katydids are often kept in cages or gourds and can be fed vegetable leaves, beans, and breadworms, among other foods, and it is enough to pay attention to ventilation and warmth retention in daily care. As long as you distinguish body color, body size, and habitat location, you can easily tell these two singing insects apart.