Bug FAQRoesel's Bush-cricket
Roeseliana roeselii · Order: Orthoptera · Family: Tettigoniidae
Also called: Roesel's Meadow Bush-cricket
They live below 100 m altitude, are spreading northward in southeast England, and are native from western Europe to western Siberia, reaching Finland, Latvia and Sweden. One generation appears each year; nymphs emerge in May, pass through five or six instars, and adults appear late June to early July, sometimes persisting to October in mild weather.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Look for yellow-green spots just behind the pronotum and a matching colored edge on the pronotum itself. The pronotum edge is solid, unlike the broken edge of the bog bush-cricket.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure between 13 and 26 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Found mainly below 100 m altitude. Increasingly common in southeast England and moving further north.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
They have one generation per year. The final nymphal stage influences whether they develop short-winged or long-winged forms.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
One generation each year; nymphs appear in May and pass through five or six molts before adulthood.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults emerge late June to early July, and may still be seen into October if the weather stays mild.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Native to southern and central Europe, extending north to Finland, Latvia and Sweden. Range stretches from western Europe across to western Siberia.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
The solid pronotum margin distinguishes it from the bog bush-cricket, which has a broken margin.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 21 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Minnesota, Vermont, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in North America; introduced in Canada; introduced in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How can I tell this cricket apart from similar species?
Check for yellow-green spots behind the pronotum and a solid edge on the pronotum; the bog bush-cricket has a broken edge.
Source: Wikipedia
When will I see them?
Adults appear from late June to early July and may stay until October in warm weather.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Tettigoniidae)
Great Green Bush-cricketTettigonia viridissimaCan bite
Dark Bush-cricketPholidoptera griseoaptera
Mediterranean KatydidPhaneroptera nanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Fork-tailed Bush KatydidScudderia furcataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Speckled Bush-cricketLeptophyes punctatissima
Greater AnglewingMicrocentrum rhombifoliumDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roesel%27s_bush-cricket
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.