Parktown prawn
The Parktown prawn, African king cricket or tusked king cricket (Libanasidus vittatus) is a species of king cricket endemic to Southern Africa. It is unrelated to prawns, Libanasidus being insects in the order Orthoptera – crickets, locusts and similar insects. The king crickets are not true crickets either: they belong to the family Anostostomatidae, whereas true crickets are in the Gryllidae. The insect gets its English name from the suburb of Parktown in Johannesburg, South Africa, where they are common. It is found throughout Namibia, and in the southern savanna and semi-arid regions of Angola. The Parktown prawn is related to the New Zealand tree wētā, which is also in the family Anostostomatidae.
| Parktown prawn | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Orthoptera |
| Suborder: | Ensifera |
| Family: | Anostostomatidae |
| Genus: | Libanasidus |
| Species: | L. vittatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Libanasidus vittatus W. F. Kirby, 1899 | |
The Parktown prawn is held in low regard by many householders, but gardeners value them for controlling garden snail populations and attracting the hadeda ibis. The animal is omnivorous, with a diet that includes snails, other invertebrates, and vegetable matter. In urban environments, they will readily take food made available by suburban dwellers, including cat food and dog food and their droppings.