Mole cricket  (Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa)

Once widespread throughout Great Britain, the mole cricket may now be close to extinction. Reasons for this dramatic decline include changes in agricultural practices and the widespread use of pesticides, drainage of wetlands and reduction of grazing or conversion to silage on damp meadows. Sites in Surrey and Hampshire were destroyed through building development.

The mole cricket was identified as a priority for conservation under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UK BAP). The Action Plan aims to establish 20 self-sustaining populations in the former range by 2005 and establish breeding colonies in captivity. Work as part of the English Nature Species Recovery Programme has appealed for the public to report sightings of the mole cricket, and a captive rearing programme has been in operation since 1996. The Natural History Museum is the lead partner for the conservation of this species, with English Nature. If you see a mole cricket in the UK please contact the Mole Cricket Working Group at the address below. Please provide the following information: Circumstances of the discovery, time of year, location of sighting, habitat present and what has happened to the insect now; if possible take a photograph for confirmation of the record.