Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa, commonly known as the European mole cricket, is widespread in Europe and has been introduced to the eastern United States. Its scientific name is derived from the Latin 'gryllus' (cricket); and 'talpa' (mole), because of the fine dense fur which covers it and its subterranean habits, and because of the mole-like forelegs adapted for digging, it's a good example of convergent evolution.
The body length is about 50 millimetres (2.0 in) in males and 70 millimetres (2.8 in) in females. The cricket is dark brown with a silky shimmer and yellowish underside and is covered with fine velvety hairs. The forelegs are powerful and modified for digging. The elytra are half the length of the abdomen and the wings are transparent and netted with veins. They are folded into pleats and seldom used as the cricket normally remains below the ground. The males can be distinguished from the females by the open vein area in the forewing known as the 'harp' while the females lack the external ovipositor that is possessed by other crickets.
This mole cricket occurs throughout much of the Western Palaearctic, but is replaced by similar species... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Biebrza National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 2 | Triglav National Park | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | |
| 3 | Białowieża National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 4 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 5 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amsterdam | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 2 | Rotterdam [The Hague] | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 3 | Kazan | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 4 | Warsaw | 🇵🇱 Poland |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a European Mole Cricket sighting in Amsterdam on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 88th most-seen of the 234 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April to August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a European Mole Cricket in Amsterdam on a given day, against under 5% in September to March, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most European Mole Cricket sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 4 cities where we can rate European Mole Cricket sightings, Amsterdam has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Rotterdam [The Hague] (Netherlands, under 5%) and Kazan (Russia, under 5%).
Same order: Orthoptera
The closest relatives of the European Mole Cricket that you can see in Amsterdam (order Orthoptera, Grasshoppers, Crickets, and Katydids) are Southern Oak Bush-Cricket (about 20%), Great Green Bush-Cricket (about 10%) and Speckled Bush-Cricket (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the European Mole Cricket is recorded against all the insects logged in Amsterdam (12 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
