# Cricket control **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 15, 2017, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266 "2017-03-15T22:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/1 "2017-03-15T22:22:48Z")
My Backyard has zillions of crickets. Now, I kinda like them, so I dont want to eradicate them with sprays or poisons, but they get into the cat dish, inside, etc. I want a natural control, like say geckos or mantids. Something I can order to be delivered here in CA. Yeah, we got lizards, nice native lizards but they go to bed about the time the crickets come out. Mantis? Geckos? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/2 "2017-03-15T22:28:48Z")
Guineafowl. 🙂 But then you would just be trading one problem for another… ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/3 "2017-03-15T22:29:40Z")
Birds. Invest in a couple feeders, with different seed mixes, and a bird feeder. Or tarantulas. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/4 "2017-03-15T22:35:02Z")
Got plenty of birds. But they are not nocturnal. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/5 "2017-03-15T22:38:01Z")
Can you set up a trap? They make great food, especially in salads and omelets. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/6 "2017-03-15T22:42:55Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Can you set up a trap? They make great food, especially in salads and omelets. Yeeeesss, but I was thinking more of a nocturnal predator. anyone know if house geckos or mantids would work? ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/7 "2017-03-15T23:18:04Z")
[Here’s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnFQQtdB7Do) the solution. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/8 "2017-03-16T00:21:35Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Got plenty of birds. But they are not nocturnal. Bats, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![oliversarmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/eb8c5e/32.png) [@oliversarmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oliversarmy)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/9 "2017-03-16T03:18:26Z")
Toads. A lot of toads. They feed at night. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/10 "2017-03-16T06:02:10Z")
> [@oliversarmy](#): > > Toads. A lot of toads. They feed at night. Yes, but can I buy some and ship to California? ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/11 "2017-03-16T07:42:19Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Yeeeesss, but I was thinking more of a nocturnal predator. > > anyone know if house geckos or mantids would work? Crickets don’t just vanish in the daytime. They lay low and don’t chirp but they are still right there. Their predators know where to find them. If you’re overrun with them at night despite having birds and lizards during the day the number one thing you can probably do is reduce the outdoor lighting. Importing non-native species to try to solve this problem isn’t a good solution. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/12 "2017-03-16T10:49:59Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Yes, but can I buy some and ship to California? [What’s your budget?](http://www.backwaterreptiles.com/toads-for-sale.html) You could buy a half dozen native toads, set them up for breeding, and release offspring periodically, populating your yard. Then you’ll eventually have a toad problem. That’s when you buy some snakes and set them up for breeding. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/13 "2017-03-16T13:20:45Z")
How about cats? That’s what [this Wikihow article](http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Crickets) suggests, as well as lizards. And cutting back on bright outdoor lights, and keeping the grasses mowed & plants trimmed, etc. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/14 "2017-03-16T17:27:03Z")
> [@Crazyhorse](#): > > Crickets don’t just vanish in the daytime. They lay low and don’t chirp but they are still right there. Their predators know where to find them. > > If you’re overrun with them at night despite having birds and lizards during the day the number one thing you can probably do is reduce the outdoor lighting. > > Importing non-native species to try to solve this problem isn’t a good solution. I am hoping to find a native species solotuion. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/15 "2017-03-16T17:45:37Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > That’s when you buy some snakes and set them up for breeding. He may need to release wave after wave of Chinese needle snakes. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2017, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/16 "2017-03-16T18:35:59Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > I am hoping to find a native species solotuion. If you have a lot of outdoor lighting they will keep coming no matter what, including poison. You’ll just have heaps of dead crickets or a bunch of really fat frogs and they will still keep coming. They are coming to the light. You’re calling them over to you and asking what kind of animal you can add to the mix to get rid of them. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/17 "2017-03-17T00:28:42Z")
> [@Crazyhorse](#): > > If you have a lot of outdoor lighting they will keep coming no matter what, including poison. You’ll just have heaps of dead crickets or a bunch of really fat frogs and they will still keep coming. They are coming to the light. You’re calling them over to you and asking what kind of animal you can add to the mix to get rid of them. Is there a certain color of light that they respond to? Would it help to change the color of the light? ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/18 "2017-03-17T01:35:43Z")
> [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > Is there a certain color of light that they respond to? Would it help to change the color of the light? According to [one study at least](http://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-have-figured-out-the-type-of-light-bulb-to-use-if-you-want-to-avoid-insects), warm yellowish-hued LED light attracted the fewest bugs. The study wasn’t about crickets specifically though and different bugs seem to respond to different lights. The warm hued LED was the overall winner. Note the study was intended for the bug’s benefit (e.g. ecological effects of light pollution) and not humans, but attracting fewer bugs should benefit both either way. It also isn’t yet peer-reviewed but was credible enough to be presented at the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference. > [@](#): > > This is the first study to directly compare all the major types of bulbs designed for exterior residential use. A widespread shift to LED lamps could greatly reduce the impact of light pollution on insects. From an ecological perspective, LEDs with a warm color temperature should be favored because they attract the fewest insects, their lower emission in the blue spectrum should reduce their contribution to light pollution, their directional technology allows for more precise lighting, and they have favorable energy conversions and life cycle assessments. In general no light, or very low light would still attract fewer than any other possibility but you may be on to something. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/19 "2017-03-17T11:02:49Z")
I’ve used a red light when collecting night crawlers (fish bait). But I think the neighbors would talk if you had red outdoor lighting. ---
**Author:** ![excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/excavating_for_a_mind)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266/20 "2017-03-17T13:37:35Z")
Tarantulas. There are species that are native to California, check a local pet store. My sister had one as a pet in the late 1980s and it loved crickets. Of course, then you’d have to put up with frigging big hairy spiders. At least they aren’t noisy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cricket-control/782266.md?page=2)