Rhaphidophoridae | |
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A Greenhouse camel cricket | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Orthoptera |
Suborder: | Ensifera |
Superfamily: | Rhaphidophoroidea Walker, 1869 |
Family: | Rhaphidophoridae Walker, 1869 |
Subfamilies and genera | |
The orthopteran family Rhaphidophoridae of the suborder Ensifera has a worldwide distribution.[1] Common names for these insects include cave crickets, camel crickets, spider crickets (sometimes shortened to "criders" or "sprickets"),[2] and sand treaders. Those occurring in New Zealand are typically referred to as jumping or cave wētā.[3] Most are found in forest environments or within caves, animal burrows, cellars, under stones, or in wood or similar environments.[4] All species are flightless and nocturnal, usually with long antennae and legs.[3] More than 500 species of Rhaphidophoridae are described.[1]
The well-known field crickets are from a different superfamily (Grylloidea) and only look vaguely similar, while members of the family Tettigoniidae may look superficially similar in body form.