Is This Bug The Creepiest, Most Gross Insect At The Jersey Shore?

If you've never seen a cave cricket, consider yourself extremely lucky. You might also know them as camelback crickets, or spider crickets, but no matter what you call them, most Jersey Shore residents consider them among the grossest most prehistoric-looking unpredictable insects you'll come across.

And there are several supremely gross things about those cave crickets. Let's start by talking about their bone-chilling look.  imagine the scariest alien arch-nemesis you have ever seen in a sci-fi movie, and now shrink it down to the size of a bug that can easily find a way into your home.

Their backward-looking legs start on the ground but then extend like a mountain over their body, making them look like a hunched-over nightmare. You know the kind that will haunt you even after you wake from that previously mentioned late-night vision.

And then there's the jumping. It's bad enough to know that an insect will jump, but this little pest does it randomly. Even the cricket doesn't know which way it's going when it leaps, meaning half the time, the prehistoric-looking little beast is coming right at you. Oh, the humanity.

Oh, and by the way, they can grow up to about an inch and a half. Great. Now we can see those six legs so much better.

So, how do you make sure these insects from hell don't invade your home? Experts say keep as many areas of your home as dry as possible, and even use a dehumidifier wherever possible. Also, avoid leaving woodpiles and other things that hold moisture near your home.

And now is the time they are getting ready to settle into their winter hideaway as nymphs and then appear in all their glory in early spring

And if they do get into your home, it's time to call an expert. And a branch of the military if necessary.

Read more about cave crickets at Pest World.