Southern Mole Cricket (Scapteriscus borellii)

The southern mole cricket, a member of the family Gryllotalpidae in the order Orthoptera, is considered a pest insect species from North Carolina to Texas. It was introduced about 1900 into Florida and Georgia from southern South America. Unlike most mole crickets that feed on decomposing organic matter and roots, the nymphs and adults of the southern mole cricket are largely carnivorous, tunneling beneath turf and pasture grasses, creating damage.