Breeding & Keeping Crickets for Busy People

Keeping crickets is easy, cost-effective, and low maintenance. When properly cared for, healthy crickets provide a reliable and nutritious food source for your bearded dragon. By keeping crickets, you can avoid the risks of feeding potentially diseased crickets from suppliers.

Crickets are omnivores and ectotherms, just like bearded dragons. Crickets can be quite noisy in small apartments, particularly the males, which make chirping sounds at night to attract females. If you live in a small space, keeping crickets could be challenging.

While there are many species of crickets, this guide focuses on the House Cricket (Acheta domesticus), known for its long antennae and flattened body.

Crickets are nocturnal. When keeping crickets you will hear a lot of chirping mainly at night, thats the males.

Keeping Crickets Key Takeaways

• Keeping crickets at home is easy, cost-effective, and low maintenance.
• The kitchen scrap diet turns out to be the most effective diet in promoting cricket growth and health.
• Home-raised crickets eliminate the risk of diseased insects from outside sources.
• You will have a steady supply of feeder crickets for your reptiles by providing proper care.
• Crickets breed quickly when provided with the right environment and care.
• House crickets can live up to 8 weeks, offering a reliable food source.
• Keeping crickets will create some noise, males chirp at night.
• Setting up a cricket colony requires minimal resources, even for beginners.
• Overcrowding, cannibalism, and unpleasant odors are risks to the colony’s health that can be managed.

Fun fact: A group of crickets is called an orchestra.

Keeping Crickets from Egg to Adult

Eggs

Female crickets lay their eggs in moist soil or substrate. Depending on environmental conditions like temperature and humidity, the eggs typically take 7 to 10 days to hatch (Spencer & Spencer, 2006). Warmer temperatures speed up the hatching process, while cooler environments can delay it.

Pinheads (Nymphs or Hatchlings)

Once the eggs hatch, tiny crickets called nymphs emerge. These nymphs resemble adult crickets but lack wings. They undergo a series of molts—typically seven instars—throughout 45 to 48 days (Spencer & Spencer, 2006). Each molt brings them closer to adulthood, gradually developing their wings and other adult features.

Adults

Once fully grown, adult crickets wings are developed and they live for an additional 30 to 40 days (Spencer & Spencer, 2006).

The bigger the cricket, the more likely it is to dominate its space over smaller crickets (Alexander, 1961).

Females

Female crickets generally live slightly longer, especially in optimal conditions, as they continue to lay eggs throughout their adult life. For example, at around 86°F (30°C), females can live for about 70 days, while males may live closer to 90 days (Clifford et al., 1977).

Females have a long, needle-like organ called an ovipositor, which they use to lay eggs.

Males

Only the males chirp during adulthood, using this sound to attract females for breeding. You’ll likely hear the males more often at night, as crickets are primarily nocturnal. The songs of bigger males have more pulses and are louder, which is more attractive to females (Brown et al., 2006).

Male crickets have a hierarchy, with those at the top rarely bothering those further down the ranks and the aggression towards each reducing with rank (Alexander, 1961).

Fights between those of equal rank can be quite fierce (Brown et al, 2006) and may result in the loser being flipped onto its back but will not normally result in damage. Those at the lower end of the hierarchy don’t tend to fight much but may mount another male as if mating.

Male crickets often display aggressive behaviors. Alexander (1961) describes these aggressive behaviors as:

• Shaking their body,
• Kicking their back legs,
• Rearing up, and
• Whipping antennae at rivals.

As the aggression escalated, it also included:

• sparing and wrestling,
• opening and/or biting with the mandibles,
• head butting, and
• distinctive stridulating.

Growth Stages of Crickets

The growth stages of crickets are (Mukherjee and Mukherjee, 2022):

• Pinheads measuring 2 to 3 mm
• Small crickets at around 10 mm
• Medium crickets between 10 to 20 mm
• Large cricket stage, measuring 20 to 30 mm in size

How Long Do Crickets Live For?

The duration of the cricket’s life cycle varies by conditions and species:

• The house cricket (Acheta domesticus) lives for 6 to 8 weeks (Clifford et al., 1977).
• Mediterranean Field Cricket (Gryllus bimaculatus) lives around 3 months (Spencer & Spencer, 2006)
• Jamaican Field Cricket (Gryllus assimilis) lives for 28 to 35 days (Spencer & Spencer, 2006).

Keeping Crickets at Home

Caring for feeder crickets properly will ensure a healthy food source for your bearded dragon. Here are the key steps to help you raise crickets with minimal hassle.

What Crickets are Best for Bearded Dragons?

House Crickets (Acheta domesticus) are widely used as reptile feeders due to their size, availability, and nutritional value. However, other species like the Gryllus bimaculatus (Two-spotted cricket, African cricket or Mediterranean field cricket) are popular in Europe and Asia due to their ability to retain carotenoids—important antioxidants derived from plants.

Crickets like Gryllidae pennsylvanicus (Fall field cricket) and Gryllidae rubens species can be more aggressive than others (Jang et al., 2008).

When it comes to keeping crickets for nutrient levels, the species of cricket you choose doesn’t significantly impact their mineral composition. According to Arbuckle (2009), crickets from different species tend to have similar levels of essential minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium regardless of their diets. This means that from a mineral standpoint, species like Acheta domesticus and Gryllus assimilis are nutritionally equivalent.

Common Challenges with Keeping Crickets

Keeping crickets comes with a few challenges, but with the right strategies, you can easily manage them:

• Noise: Male crickets chirp, which can get noisy, especially at night. If the sound bothers you, consider keeping them in a garage or shed.
• Odor: Crickets can start to smell if not properly cared for. The main causes are overcrowding, dead crickets, and too much moisture. Keep their containers clean, dry and never overcrowd to avoid unpleasant smells.

Creating the Ideal Habitat for Keeping Crickets

Containers and Space for Keeping Crickets

When setting up a habitat for crickets, choosing the right container is crucial for their health and growth. A plastic container works well, as long as it offers proper ventilation.

For small colony setups, it’s easy to provide a container larger than what they need, which helps prevent overcrowding. Overcrowding can negatively affect crickets’ life cycles, leading to stress, lower growth rates, and increased mortality (Clifford et al., 1997).

Crickets are nocturnal, so they do better in opaque or dark containers. A container with dimensions of 60 cm x 40 cm x 40 cm (length x width x height) is ideal for keeping crickets. This size offers enough space for 500 to 700 adult crickets with minimal risk of cannibalism (Mukherjee & Mukherjee, 2022).

Higher-sided containers are especially useful, as they allow for vertical placement of egg cartons, giving crickets plenty of surfaces to climb and hide, while also reducing the likelihood of escape when the container is opened.

The number of egg trays in the container is just as important as the size of the container. Egg trays provide crickets with places to hide, creating a sense of safety and reducing stress. This makes crickets more likely to thrive and reduces aggressive behavior.

Adequate ventilation is another key aspect of creating a healthy cricket habitat. You can achieve good airflow by using a fine mesh lid (such as aluminum flywire), or if you’re using a pre-made cricket breeding kit, it will likely have the appropriate lid already. If more ventilation is needed, you can cut a section out of the container’s side and secure metal flywire over the opening to prevent escapes.

Overcrowding has a significant impact on cricket health and quality. Keeping crickets in cramped conditions leads to higher mortality due to increased competition for resources, stress, and a higher risk of cannibalism (Gutiérrez et al., 2020). Crickets housed in less crowded environments tend to be healthier, grow larger, and develop faster, as overcrowding not only stunts growth but also increases the spread of diseases and parasites (Crocker & Hunter, 2018).

Stress from overcrowding forces crickets to compete for food and water, leading to aggressive behavior, injuries, and an overall weakened colony. Research by Crocker and Hunter (2018) shows that crickets in less crowded environments receive more growth-boosting hormones from their mothers, resulting in stronger, healthier offspring. On the other hand, crickets raised in overcrowded conditions may develop more slowly.

By providing enough space, good ventilation, and adequate hiding spots like egg trays, you can create the ideal habitat for your cricket colony, ensuring they remain healthy, grow well, and are a reliable food source for your pets.

Creating Cricket Condos: Why Egg Trays and Cardboard Matter

Providing crickets with enough space and hiding spots is crucial for their health, privacy, and overall well-being. Crickets are naturally inclined to seek out secluded areas for safety, so setting up cricket condos using egg cartons or cardboard helps meet these needs. Here’s how and why to create a comfortable living environment for your crickets:

1. Cricket Condos for Privacy and Safety: Crickets need private, sheltered spaces to feel safe and avoid stress. Using egg trays is especially effective because they significantly increase the surface area within the enclosure, giving crickets plenty of space to move and hide. The added surface area also helps reduce aggression by allowing crickets to spread out, thus preventing overcrowding and competition.
2. Extending the Life of Egg Cartons: Spraying a plastic coating on the cartons can extend their life and prevent them from degrading too quickly (Clifford et al., 1977). This makes egg cartons a long-lasting, low-cost option for creating condos in a cricket enclosure.
3. Alternative Condo Materials: If egg trays aren’t available, paper rolls stacked together or cardboard boxes cut up and folded in concertina fashion can serve as good alternatives. These materials also provide crickets with secluded spaces where they can feel protected. Covering the top of the areas with additional pieces of cardboard can further increase the number of hiding spots, promoting a healthy and less stressful environment.
4. Egg-Laying Area: In addition to condos, crickets need a designated egg-laying area. This can be easily provided by placing a container of moist soil in the enclosure. Topping the soil with moss can help keep it from drying out too quickly. It’s important to ensure the soil remains moist but not wet, as overly damp conditions can lead to issues with mold or rot, which can harm the crickets.

By using egg trays, cardboard, or other simple materials to create condos, you’re enhancing the crickets’ environment, which is key to maintaining a healthy and thriving colony.

Egg Laying Trays

The egg laying containers should be filled with soil or peet at least 3 cm deep (Peer et al., 2024). The female cricket deposits the eggs about 10mm into the soil. If the soil dries out quickly, you can cover it with moist peat moss to help retain moisture.

Sand for the egg laying containers does not need to be sterilized (Clifford et al., 1977). Sand with some clay content is preferred over masonry sand because it retains water better and helps prevent mold (Clifford et al., 1977).

Plastic takeaway containers are ideal for egg laying containers. Drill small holes in the lid to allow for airflow while maintaining moisture levels.

Do Feeder Crickets Need Heat?

Crickets are cold-blooded and need warmth to thrive. If it gets too cold, they will become dormant. Conversely, if they are provided optimal temperatures and conditions, they will be active, growing and breeding quickly, they will.

Ideally, the crickets need to be housed at 28-35°C (Clifford et al.,1977). Below 27°C, there will be a greater rate of death (Clifford et al.,1977). The hotter the temperature, the quicker they will grow but their lifespan will decrease. Cooler temperatures result in bigger crickets (Mukherjee & Mukherjee, 2022).

What Humidity do Crickets Need?

From the 4^th instar to adults whereas 60% is better for hatching and pinheads (Peer et al., 2024). Too much moisture can lead to mold, while too little can cause dehydration.

Do Feeder Crickets Need Light?

Crickets do not like direct sunlight and prefer dark, confined, protected spaces, such as those offered by dark containers and egg cartons. While they may leave their cover during the daytime, they are easily startled and will retreat into their shelter (Kieruzel, 1976). Crickets are most active between 19:00 and 24:00 hours, seeking shadows during the day and becoming more active at night (Kieruzel, 1976).

According to research by Van Peer et al. (2024), crickets, specifically Acheta domesticus, do not require direct light to thrive. In fact, they perform best when kept in darkness or low-light conditions. A photoperiod of 12-14 hours of light is suggested to mimic natural daylight patterns, but crickets can be reared effectively without continuous exposure to light.

While crickets don’t rely on much light, providing a balanced light-dark cycle can support their natural activity patterns and overall health. Therefore, keeping crickets in a dark, warm environment is perfectly fine, and the focus should be on maintaining the right temperature and humidity rather than ensuring they have access to light (Van Peer et al., 2024).

What Substrates do Crickets Need?

Use paper towels or a light layer of vermiculate as a substrate.

Essential Care and Maintenance for Keeping Cricket

When keeping crickets, proper care and maintenance are essential to maintain a healthy and thriving colony.

• Cleaning and Hygiene: Clean the container every day by removing waste, dead crickets, and uneaten food. This helps prevent the spread of disease and keeps the environment fresh. Disinfect the habitat regularly—especially when odors are noticeable or at least weekly—to reduce bacteria levels and avoid illness within the colony (Spencer & Spencer, 2006).
• Food & Water Management: Keep the water dispenser clean. Replace wet or soiled food daily to prevent mold growth and pest infestations. Hygiene is key to maintaining a healthy colony. Providing vegetable peelings from your kitchen, such as those from the evening meal, can be an easy way to keep things fresh. Be sure to remove any uneaten food from the previous day to avoid attracting pests or bacteria.
• Preventing Pests: Monitoring pests like ants, flies, and beetles is a daily task.
• Habitat Conditions: Ensure that the container is adequately ventilated and dark. It is preferable that the container is kept at a stable temperature of around 30 degrees Celsius to promote a healthy environment. However, for these small setups that do not need to produce a lot of crickets the temperatures can be lower. Humidity is important. In dry weather, mist the habitat if the humidity is low.
• Egg Tray Care: If you’re using cardboard egg trays, inspect them regularly for mold or damage. Once the colony has expired and finished with the trays, clean off any debris. Let the trays air-dry in the sun, and if necessary, heat-treat them in an oven for about 30 minutes at 60 to 70°C to sterilize them for reuse (Hanboonsong & Durst, 2020).
• Final Clean-up: At the end of a breeding cycle, clean and disinfect all containers and equipment to prepare for the next colony. Using clean and sterilized materials ensures the next generation will start in a fresh, disease-free environment.

The frass at the bottom of the housing and other waste matter is a great fertilizer for your pot plants!

Why are my Crickets Dying?

9 reasons your crickets are dying are:

1. Old age
2. Lack of water
3. Lack of food
4. Temperatures below 27°C (Clifford et al.,1977) or too high
5. Disease
6. Overcrowding
7. Poor hygiene
8. Cannibalism
9. Low humidity (Kemper cited in Kieruzel, 1976)

If your crickets are dying and it is not from old age, lack of water or food, then it is possible that the colony is diseased. If this is the case, it may be best to euthanize the cricket colony. Clean and disinfect the entire enclosure and equipment before starting again.

Signs of disease in the cricket colony are inactivity, slow movement, and slowing down eating (Hanboonsong & Durst, 2020). These are also signs of poor temperature control.

Preventing Cannibalism

Crickets can turn on each other if they don’t have enough space or proper nutrition. To prevent cannibalism:

• Avoid overcrowding: Provide enough room for all crickets to move freely. Keeping crickets in overcrowded housing increases cannibalism and impedes access to food, water, and rest (Clifford et al.,1977).
• Offer hiding places: Use egg cartons to create hiding spots, which reduce stress and aggression.
• Feed a balanced diet: Crickets need a good mix of protein and plant matter.

Do Crickets Smell?

Like any animal kept in high concentrations, there is the potential for odor. Odors can become stronger as bacteria build up in confined, poorly aired containers. Add to that dead crickets, and they can smell, perhaps even stink. Cricket smell can be kept in check by:

1. Do not overstocking the container.
2. Keep the container clean and equipment clean.
3. Don’t use water gels unless you will switch them out frequently. The cost adds up.
4. Remove old food daily.
5. Ensure water is provided in a manner that prevents spills increasing the moisture in the environment.
6. Remove dead crickets daily.

Pest Control in the Cricket Colony

At times, keeping crickets can have its issues such as infestions of pest like mites, flies, and beetles. To prevent infestations, ensure proper hygiene practices, such as cleaning regularly and removing dead crickets promptly. Additionally, maintain appropriate humidity and temperature levels to discourage pest growth. For severe cases which are difficult to manage, it may be best to euthanize themcolony and start again.

What Do You Feed Crickets?

Crickets are omnivores and require a balanced diet to thrive. They need protein (such as meat, other insects, or eggs), carbohydrates (such as fruits, vegetables, and flowers), and fats (such as cheese, flax meal and seeds). In the first 14 days of life, crickets benefit from higher protein feed to promote growth. Research shows that ensuring a variety of nutrients is key to their health and development.

Van Peer et al. (2024) recommends a high-protein diet containing 20-30% crude protein which significantly boosts cricket growth and survival rates. Crickets fed on diets with sufficient protein grow faster and reach maturity quicker. Ground chicken feed is a good standard base diet, which usually falls within this ideal protein range and provides essential nutrients.

Crickets can self-manage their food intake, for optimal growth ensure food is always available.

Cricket Foods

Staples: Some foods are useful as a staple food (around 25% of the diet) but not all will meet the required protein levels. Boost with proteins from other sources. Crickets eat better when their food is made of small particles. Crush or powder foods that come in pellets. The protein values listed against the feeds below are based on the requirements of the animal species it is made for. Pollard is variable and can be checked with your supplier.

• Ground chicken feed or growers mash (18-20%)
• Pollard (approx 12-21% protein)
• Rodent foods ground (16%+)
• Rabbit pellets crushed (12-16%)

Meats and proteins: Ground chicken feed is a recommended base for a diet. Be cautious of hygiene issues with raw meat. Small, quickly eaten portions are safer if used at all. Remove leftovers within the day. Alternatives to meat include ground pet biscuits or fish food provide a reliable protein source.

• Cat biscuits (powdered is easier to eat especially for pinheads)
• Cheese
• Dog biscuits (powdered is easier)
• Fish flakes
• Fish meal
• Insects (e.g. mealworms)
• Meat
• Reptile foods from a pet shop
• Skim milk powder

Grains & cereals: Provide energy and some essential nutrients for crickets.

• Alfalfa pellets
• Baby rice cereal
• Brewers yeast
• Corn meal
• Flaxseed (improves omega-3 fatty acids (Finke, 2015))
• Nuts
• Oats rolled
• Rice cereal
• Soya flour full fat
• Sweet potato flour

Vegetables and vegetation: Vegetables can also be staples in the crickets diet. Vegetables offer hydration and key vitamins. Kale, for example, has been shown to improve weight gain and nutrient intake (Oloo et al., 2019).

High Carotene Content:

• Bell Peppers (Red or Orange Capsicums): Good sources of carotenoids, especially as they ripen.
• Broccoli: Beta carotene.
• Carrots: Exceptionally high in beta-carotene.
• Kale and Spinach: While not as high in beta-carotene, they are rich in lutein, another carotenoid.
• Sweet Potatoes: Also rich in beta-carotene, beneficial for improving color and health.
• Pumpkin: Contains beta-carotene; noted for flavor enhancement and odor reduction in products (Hanboonsong & Durst, 2020).
• Tomatoes: Higher in lycopene, a type of carotenoid.

Other Vegetables and Vegetation:

• Alfalfa
• Sprouts
• Cabbage (Savoy)
• Corn
• Cucumbers
• Peas
• Flowers (Include those known to be safe for human consumption.)
• Grasses of All Types (e.g., Napier)
• Green Cassava Leaves
• Morning Glory, Papaya Leaves, Sweet Potato Vines, Water Hyacinth
• Spirulina

Fruits: Fruits are high in sugar and best removed from the diet days before feeding to reptiles.

• Apple
• Bananas (including the banana peel. Oloo et al., 2019. Ripe only, unripened can be bitter)
• Grapes
• Mangoes (high beta-carotene)
• Melons
• Orange slice
• Papaya
• Pears

Optimal Cricket Food Using Kitchen Scraps

A study by Collavo et al. (2005) found that the most effective diet in promoting cricket growth, survival, and overall health was what they referred to as the “human refuse diet.” The diet of human kitchen waste products worked well and is likely easy enough for most pet owners to adopt.

The cricket diet in the study consisted of everyday food scraps, making it a sustainable and cost-effective diet for keeping crickets. The key ingredients include:

• Fruits and Vegetables: Providing essential vitamins.
• Rice and Pasta: Offering complex carbohydrates for energy.
• Pork and Beef Meat: Supplying dense protein for muscle development and growth.
• Bread: Adding additional carbohydrates and fiber.
• Cheese: Contributing fats and proteins are critical for rapid growth.
• Egg Yolk: Boosting overall nutrition with fats, proteins, vitamins, and minerals.

This diverse combination of nutrients helped crickets grow faster, reaching an average weight of 0.45 grams per cricket after 9 weeks and achieving a survival rate of 47.5%. The crickets were also nutritionally superior, with high protein content (up to 60% dry weight) and significant levels of essential fatty acids and minerals like calcium and iron.

The variety of food scraps in the waste diet provided crickets with a balanced diet rich in proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, leading to better growth and reproductive rates.

Because the cricket feed was based on scraps that many household kitchens produce, it reduces reliance on commercial feeds and lowers the cost of keeping crickets.

Providing Feeder Crickets with Water

Water must always be provided. The life cycle of crickets can be harmed by water deprivation and small temperature changes (Clifford et al.,1977). Poor hydration stunts growth and increases the colony’s death rate. Vegetables do not provide sufficient water for crickets (Livingston et al., 2014).

The water container must protect the crickets from drowning, as crickets can drown in standing water (Boyer, 2021).

Outside of the standard watering container, another way to provide water when keeping crickets is by using PVC pipes with sealed ends to hold the water. Cut a slit along the pipe and insert a cloth wick, which will pull the water out as the cricket’s drink. Since cloths or sponges can quickly collect bacteria, replacing or washing them every few days is essential to keep your crickets healthy.

For information on cricket gels see article on insect housing.

3 Ways to Provide Water to Pinhead Crickets

The tiny size of pinhead crickets requires extra care when it comes to providing water. Here are three effective ways to keep them hydrated:

• Slice of fresh potato twice daily.
• A lettuce leaf moistened from the tap and then shake off excess water before providing.
• Moistened cotton wool in a small lid.

Crickets should always have access to water in one form or another. Replenish before the water source dries out.

What Research Says About the Importance of Hydration in Crickets

McCluney and Date (2008) emphasize the importance of hydration for the growth and overall health of house crickets (Acheta domesticus). In their study, crickets with continuous access to water showed a 32% increase in hydration levels compared to those with only 4 hours of daily water availability. This difference in hydration had a profound effect on their growth. Crickets with 24 hours of water grew 59% more in dry mass and 72% more in length than water-deprived ones.

The researchers also found that crickets with continuous water access had a dry mass growth rate of 2.2 mg per day, while those limited to only 4 hours of water a day grew at a much slower rate of 0.8 mg per day. In terms of body length, well-hydrated crickets grew at a rate of 0.61 mm per day, more than double the growth rate of crickets with limited water access, which grew at a dismal rate of 0.22 mm per day.

Dehydration stunts crickets’ growth and increases mortality rates. During the study, 73% of crickets in the lowest hydration group died compared to only 39% in the group with full water access.

Keeping Crickets to Breed

Keeping crickets to breed can be quite satisfying. For busy people, it’s often easier to maintain only one generation of crickets rather than continuing the colony through multiple generations. Start the next generation in a new container.

During mating season, you’ll hear the males chirping by rubbing their wings together, which is their way of attracting females. The females are drawn to these calls. After they make contact with their antennae, there’s a brief courtship period. Females often mate with more than one male before finding a good spot to lay their eggs.

5 Steps to Breeding Crickets

Step 1: Set Up Enclosures

• For small setups with a few reptiles, you’ll need 3 containers:
  • 1^st Container – Original Colony: Holds your reptile feeders and is also a breeding colony.
  • 2^nd Container – Next Generation: For the newly hatched baby crickets.
  • 3^rd Container – Spare: To switch colonies while cleaning the main one.

Step 2: Prepare for egg-laying

When the male starts chirping, ensure an egg-laying container is in the enclosure.

Adult females start oviposition from 10 days old (Peer et al., 2024) and lay eggs 1 week after mating (Spencer & Spencer, 2006). Egg laying continues for up to 14 days (Hanboonsong, 2013).

After the eggs have been laid, remove the tray and pop it in the new generation’s container (future living habitat). Pop the takeaway containers lid partly on the egg laying container to help retain some moisture while still allowing the baby crickets (pinheads) to escape.

In small setups, egg laying trays can be replaced up to every 7 days, sooner if the temperatures are hatching the pinheads earlier. In commercial setups egg trays are removed daily (Hanboonsong, 2013).

Do not put the egg-laying substrate (sand or any other substrate being used for breeding) on the enclosure’s bottom. As the egg laying substrate must stay moist the housing will have some unpleasant odors and unsanitary conditions.

How many eggs does a cricket lay? Each female cricket produces on average up to 707 eggs in their lifetime (Wilson & Walker, 2019).

If you want to slow down the breeding because you have sufficient crickets, then rather than incubating the container, freeze it. Once frozen the contents of the container can be disposed of.

Alternatively, if you are keeping lacewings larvae then the eggs will provide good food for them. Or hatch the eggs and feed the lacewings the pinheads.

Step 3: Incubating the Eggs

To keep the egg trays warm, place it in the new container prepared for the next generation where the crickets will live and position it on top of your reptile’s cage. The warmth from the reptile enclosure will help maintain the temperature needed for the eggs to develop properly.

Make sure to occasionally check that the soil in the egg-laying area remains moist. If the soil dries out, lightly mist it with water to maintain the right level of moisture.

How long it takes for the cricket eggs to hatch depends on the temperature. You can use these temperatures to speed up or slow down your next generation of crickets depending on your needs. Based on temperature the cricket egg hatching times are as follows (Clifford et al., 1977 & Roe et al., 1980):

• At 23°C, eggs take 46 to 51 days to hatch.
• At 27°C, eggs take 30 days.
• At 30°C, eggs hatch in 13 days.
• Incubate eggs at 34 ± 2°C for about 9 days.

Step 4: Caring for the Pinheads (Nymphs)

Once the eggs hatch provide food and water for the nymphs. Pinheads need constant hydration (Clifford et al., 1977).

Keep the enclosure warm, as below 27°C, cricket growth slows significantly (Clifford et al., 1977).

Step 5: Crickets’ Growth to Adulthood

Crickets reach their final molt in 45 days at 30°C, going through 7-9 instars (Clifford et al., 1977).

Typical weights:

• Males: 410 mg
• Females: 370 mg
• Gravid females: up to 500 mg (Clifford et al., 1977).

Avoid breeding crickets over several generations without new stock, as inbreeding reduces activity and slows growth (Hanboonsong, 2013).

Keeping Crickets Conclusion

Keeping crickets as feeder insects for your bearded dragon is an easy, cost-effective, and low-maintenance option for pet owners. With the right care, you can provide your dragon with a healthy, nutritious food source while also avoiding the risks that come with sourcing crickets from unreliable suppliers. Although crickets can be noisy and require some space, they offer a simple, sustainable solution for those looking to keep their reptiles well-fed.

By following the proper steps for breeding, feeding, and maintaining your cricket colony, you’ll be able to keep your crickets healthy and productive. Ensuring an ideal habitat with the right temperature, humidity, and hygiene will help avoid common issues such as overcrowding, cannibalism, and odor. Whether you’re keeping crickets for one or multiple reptiles, this guide equips you with the essential knowledge to manage your cricket farm effectively.

In the end, keeping crickets can be an incredibly rewarding and economical way to ensure your bearded dragon gets the nourishment it needs to thrive.

References

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Brown, W. D., Smith, A. T., Moskalik, B., & Gabriel, J. (2006). Aggressive contests in house crickets: size, motivation and the information content of aggressive songs. Animal Behaviour, 72(1), 225–233.

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