Triamescaptor aotea
With their long, slender bodies and specially adapted legs, these insects are built for life in underground tunnels.
Mole crickets create burrows in the ground, and were well known to Māori who ran into them while cultivating land. They can easily move backwards and forwards, relying on their antennae to let them know what’s ahead of them and a pair of sensory cerci on the rear of the body to know what’s behind. The ends of the front legs look like clawed shovels and are used to dig the tunnels they call home.
They feed on roots but will also eat soil-dwelling insects such as grass grub and porina moth larvae.
Check these links for more info on the NZ Mole Cricket in NZ
Wikipedia: Information on Triamescaptor aotea
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