Mormon cricket
The Mormon cricket (Anabrus simplex) is a large insect native to western North America in rangelands dominated by sagebrush and forbs. Anabrus is a genus in the shield-backed katydid subfamily in the Tettigoniidae family, commonly called katydids, bush crickets, and previously "long-horned grasshoppers". Its common name, "Mormon cricket", is a misnomer: true crickets are of the family Gryllidae.
| Mormon cricket | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Orthoptera |
| Suborder: | Ensifera |
| Family: | Tettigoniidae |
| Genus: | Anabrus |
| Species: | A. simplex |
| Binomial name | |
| Anabrus simplex Haldeman, 1852 | |
The Mormon cricket takes its common name from the prominent role it played in the miracle of the gulls, after the Mormon settlers in Utah had encountered them while pushing westward.
Although flightless, the Mormon cricket may travel up to two kilometres a day in its swarming phase, during which it may be a serious agricultural pest and sometimes a traffic hazard.