Summer, eh? It's just the perfect time of year. Especially this one, with the heatwave we've been having. You get to wear just shorts and t-shorts, you can to the beach, you can chill out with your friends in the park, you get attacked by jumping spider crickets, you...
Wait. What? Jumping spider crickets? Yes, apparently these are insects that look like spiders but jump like crickets. Because apparently wasps and spiders and flies aren't enough to worry about during the warmer months.
If you're wondering why you perhaps haven't heard much about these little critters before, it's because they're really most commonly found in America, Australia and Asia. But they've now been spotted in the UK. Oh good. That was sarcasm, by the way.
Actually, although these things look like the kind of thing crawling around inside zombies everywhere, they aren't that bad.
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But they can eat through clothes and carpets and leave foul-smelling droppings. And one woman told Gloucestershire Live that when she tried to get rid one - thinking it was a spider - it jumped on her face before scrambling under the bathroom door.
Which sounds positively harrowing, especially given that their legs can grow up to 10cm long but look like they're attached to the body of a cockroach.
However, when they jump towards you, it's only because they're scared themselves - their vision isn't particularly good, so they deal with any perceived threat by jumping towards it. Which might sound counter-intuitive but it would sure as hell work on us.
While the little critters aren't particularly prevalent in the UK, they're already common home invaders in other countries, and are also known as cave crickets or camel crickets. Both of which are much better - and much less creepy - names.
Generally, outside of the home, they can be found in forests, caves and animal burrows, but also in cellars, under wood and inside cupboards. So if you happen to come across one, don't be scared, but be prepared to get out of the way.
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