European mole cricket

Symptoms

Spongy, raised tunnels just under the surface that make the lawn feel soft and uneven underfoot, very like a mole but smaller and shallower. Grass over the tunnels yellows and dies because the roots are severed; small mounds of loose soil appear, especially after warm rain. At night you may hear a low churring song from the burrows. Damage is worst in light, sandy, moist Mediterranean soils.