RAISING 
CRICIE(TR
_g2xg
SBAIT
I-. S. SWINGLE, Fish Culturist
cRICKETS are one of the most
effective baits for bream during the
summer and late fall. Thev are usuallv
abundant in May, June, and September,
and may be found under piles of de-
caying plants in gardens, in lawns, and
in wheat, oat, or hay fields. However,
during most of the year thev are hard
to find and always are hard to catch.
Experiments have been conducted for
3 years at the Alabama Agricultural Ex-
periment Station on methods of raising
crickets for bait. A method has been
developed whereby they may be raised
throughout the year in metal containers
kept in the garage, basement, or vacant
room.ll,
LIFE CYCLE OF THE CRICKET
The common black field cricket' has
been raised successfully for fish bait.
'The scientific name of this cricket is
Gryllus assinilis Burmeister.
The eggs, which are laid in nmoist soil
or sand, hatch in 15 to 25 days. The
young crickets resemble the adults, but
do not have wings. Their rate of growth
depends upon temperature. Growth
practically ceases at temperatures be-
low 70' F., is rapid between 80 and
900 F., and is again retarded by tem-
peratures above 95' F. At low tempera-
tures, crickets live for long periods but
make very little growth. High tem-
peratures, which retard growth, also
shorten the life of the crickets and pre-
vent normal reproduction. At a tem-
perature of about 80 F., the young
crickets become large enough for use as
bait in one month; they require 1 to 2
more months to reach full maturity.
Mature crickets can be recognized by
the presence of long wings covering the
posterior of the body. 
Mature females
lay eggs at intervals for a period of 30
to 50 days. Consequently, crickets of
all sizes may be found in the cans at
any one time.
STATION
INSTITUTE
Auburn, Alabama
AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT
of the ALABAMA POLYTECHNIC
M. J. Funchess, Director
Leaflet No. 22
Reprint, May 1961
METHOD OF REARING
Rearing cans. Metal cans with a
minimum depth of 18 to 24 inches and
as wide as possible are used. Garbage
cans, lard cans, metal drums with the
tops removed, metal troughs, tin-lined
boxes, or similar receptacles are satis-
factory.
Location of rearing cans. The
selected cans are placed in the base-
ment, in the garage or other out-build-
ing, or in a vacant room. This is neces-
sary to protect the crickets from ants,
spiders, and various parasites.
Sand for egg laying. Clean, 
fine
sand is placed in each can to a depth
of 4 to 6 inches. The sand is then
moistened so that it feels damp to the
touch, because crickets will not lay in
dry sand. This should furnish enough
moisture for hatching the first crop of
crickets.
While the Vyoung crickets are growing
up, the sand munst be relatively dry,
,which helps to keep the crickets free
Cotton is used in saucer of drink-
ing fountain to prevent young
crickets from drowning.
from disease. For this reason, the sand
should not be moistened again for about
3 months, \xxhen the young crickets have
matured and are ready to lay.
Drinking fountain. Glass-jar 
drink-
ing fountains commonly sold by hard-
ware and feed stores for watering
chickens are satisfactory. This consists
of a 1-quart fruit jar inverted in a
saucer-like glass dish. The saucer is
filled with cotton slightly above the
water level. This allows the small
crickets to obtain water from the moist
cotton without danger of drowning, and
also prevents mosquitoes from breeding
in the saucer. The drinking fountain is
placed on the sand in the center of the
rearing can. The water supply will need
to be replenished, the saucer cleaned,
and the cotton replaced every 4 to 8
weeks.
Excelsior. To provide cover for the
young crickets and additional surface
for them to rest on, wood excelsior is
placed over the surface of the sand to
a depth of -1 or 5 inches.
Crickets feeding on laying mash
in tray (center). Light provides
heat during cool weather.
4;
> /
/ 1N
Crickets used in stocking should be about half females (left) and half
males (right). The female has a long tube at the rear end, which is
used to deposit eggs in the wet sand.
Waxing sides of can. The inside
of the rearing can next is thoroughly
cleaned and made as smooth as possible
with fine sandpaper for a distance of
8 to 10 inches down from the top. This
area is then coated with a good grade
of floor wax and polished with cheese-
cloth. Two coats of wax should be
applied. This wax barrier will prevent
the crickets from climbing out of the
can.
Food. The most satisfactory food for
crickets was found to be poultry laying
mash, which may be bought at feed
stores at a cost of 4 to 6 cents per
pound. A saucer or small tray filled
with the mash is placed on the sand in
the rearing can. The excelsior is pulled
around it, so that the crickets may
readily reach the food. When the
crickets are small, they will consume a
saucerful of mash in 2 or 3 weeks; as
they grow larger they will eat that
amount in 4 or 5 days. No other feed
is necessary.
Stocking the rearing can. Approx-
imately 20 to 30 adult crickets are used
to each rearing can up to 2 feet in
diameter; proportionately more will be
needed for larger containers.
Crickets wxill not lay eggs until they
have become adults. Mature crickets
have well-developed wings, while im-
mature ones are wingless. If winged
crickets are not available for stocking,
young crickets may be used, although a
considerably longer period will elapse
before eggs are laid.
After stocking, the crickets are ex-
amined every 3 to 4 days for a period
of 2 weeks and dead ones are removed.
This is done because occasionally dis-
eased or parasitized crickets may be
present in the original stock.
Dusting for ant control. To keep
out ants xwhich kill crickets, the floor
around the rearing cans is dusted with
insect powder or derris. This is re-
peated once every 1 or 2 months, taking
care that none of the dust gets into the
rearing cans.
Screening to keep out parasites.
If the rearing cans are kept in a garage
or some other unscreened building, it
Cricie tox used by fishermen has
center opening with metal collar
projecting downward to prevent
the escape of bait.
will be necessary to place a piece of
wicndow screen over the top of the rear-
ing cans to keep out parasites and
spiders. If kept in a screened 
building,
this should not be necessary.
Heating the rearing can. During
summer months crickets will grow rap-
idly without additional heat, except
when kept in basements or other loca-
tions where the temperature remains
less than 800 F.
If it is desired to raise crickets dur-
ing the late fall, winter, or early spring,
additional heat will be needed. In ex-
periments at this Statim, the use of
electric lights for heat has proved more
satisfactory than attempts to heat and
regulate the temperature of an entire
room. The crickets move toward or
awav from the bulb as they become too
cold" or too \warm.
The electric light bulb is suspended
in the rearing can to within 5 or 6
inches of the excelsior, and the top of
the can is covered with cardboard, pa-
per, or cloth. The bulb should not
touich the ex(cl.ioi as it max cause fire;
also, the crickets may w)alk up the
light xwire and out of the rearing can.
The size of light bulb to use depends
upon the size of the rearing can and
the air temperature. At Auburn, a can
2 feet in diameter and 
2 feet deep,
placed in an unheated room, was heated
satisfactorily by a 100-watt bull) dur-
ing the winter months. Sufficient heat
was furnished bv a 40-watt bulb during
the cool spring months.
When the crickets do not move close
to the bull) during the 
coolest periods,
this indicates that the can is being kept
too warm. In such a case, a bulb of
lower wattage is substituted. The life
of a bul) under continuous operation
is 1 to 2 weeks.
After the crickets become large
enough for bait, the heat is removed.
If kept in a cool place,- they will grow
verv slowly and will remain approxi-
mately the'same size for sexveral months.
Due to the expense of heating during
cold weather, it is much more economi-
cal to raise a large crop of crickets dur-
ing the warm fall months. They then
may be kept in an unheated room
throughout the late fall, winter, and
early spring. Extra crickets can be
raised at any time during this period
in heated cans if the supply becomes
low.
Re-starting the rearing cons. Four
crops of crickets have beien raised in
a can without cleaning it out or re-
stocking. However, larger crops of
crickets were raised wvhen the cans were
thoroughly cleaned and started over
after raising one to two crops.
Production per can. Four hundred
crickets can be raised every 3 months
in a can 24 inches in diameter. A can
15 inches in diameter produces about
200 crickets.
Amount of food required. Approx-
imately 2 pounds of laving mash are re-
quiredl for each 100 crickets produced.
First Printing, August 1945, 10M
Second Printing, June 1946, 20M
Third Printing, May 1961, 5M