Imagine My Surprise.....

Imagine my surprise when I turned on the outside tap and have this cricket pop out.

With the weather recently being very humid and hot this little critter must have been so desperate for a drink that he took himself up inside the tap. The cricket was almost as big as the opening of the tap so I was really quite amazed at how it managed to fit inside in the first place.

After scurrying up the outside of the tap it clung on for it's life, perhaps thinking I might harm him. I dribbled a little bit of water over him and left him to get over the shock of being pushed out of the tap with such force.

He kept a close eye on what I was doing and I spent a few minutes admiring him, it's not often I get to see a cricket so close. Crickets really are quite fascinating, I didn't realise how long their antennas are.

Crickets have two sets of eyes, a pair of compound eyes which allows them to see in multiple directions, plus a pair of simple eyes, which differentiate between light and dark. A fascinating encounter which prompted me to do a bit of research into these tiny creatures.

With the chickens close by I was also mindful of him keeping safe from them, after nearly being drowned I didn't want him to end up as a chicken snack!

Thankfully he stayed in the safety of the laundry sink until dark.......