Cricket season began early for Lampasas, but that could be just a preview of what could be expected as autumn -- and cooler temperatures -- nears. The crickets are already invading Lampasas. What can residents do about the annual swarm of pests that have arrived early in the city?

It's as easy as turning off the lights, said Dr. James Merchant, urban entomologist with the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.

"I realize safety is a factor, but the lights are what attracts the crickets to places of business, factories and other buildings," said Merchant.

The most common type of cricket is the black field cricket, the entomologist said. "They are mostly nocturnal and live outdoors in fields, pastures and unplowed fields. They feed on seeds, plants and dead insects."

Crickets generally are harmless, and they are not no- ticed until the proper triggers are in place for them, such as temperatures dropping, Merchant said.

Though the typical "cricket season" -- their mating season -- is early fall, they can appear early -- as they are in Lampasas. Merchant speculated that could be because warmer temperatures speed up their development.

"This could be a precursor for things to come, and if they are here this early, Lampasas will probably have an extended cricket season this year."

Merchant said lights outside of businesses are beacons that draw pests. But when the sun comes up, they wriggle into cracks and any other dark places they can find.

He suggested changing bright ultraviolet light bulbs to sodium vapor lights because the yellowish lights they give off are not as attractive to pests.

"The bright lights draw crickets to places of business by the thousands," he said. "The lights act as navigational tools."

And insecticide is not the answer.

"It just leaves a dead, stinking mass of crickets. The solution is not to kill them but to not let them get into the places of business."

Merchant urged residents to sweep up crickets as soon as possible and dispose of them. Pestcontrol companies can put treatment around buildings, he said, but the best defense is a good offense.

"The best thing we can do is not roll out the welcome mat for them. Historically, Texas has lots of crickets. They aren't in urban areas as much as rural communities because the urban areas are so built up there's not as much habitat for the crickets," he said.

"They like rural, undeveloped land where the population is not as built up. And Lampasas is close enough to rural land even inside the city."