This Mysterious Hawaiian Cricket Walks on Lava and Drinks Sea Foam

A mysterious cricket that survives in one of the most inhospitable environments on Earth has been filmed walking on lava in footage captured in Hawaii's Volcanoes National Park.

The video clip comes from a five-part National Geographic documentary series, narrated by Garth Brooks, that takes viewers on a journey through some of America's most notable national parks, including Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Badlands, Big Bend and Hawaii Volcanoes.

The latter, where the footage of the lava cricket was filmed, encompasses the summits of two of the world's most active volcanoes—Kīlauea and Mauna Loa, both of which are located on Hawaii's Big Island.

The wingless lava cricket (Caconemobius fori)—known as 'ūhini nēnē pele in Hawaiian—is the first multicellular lifeform to make a home in the hardened lava flows resulting from recent eruptions on the island, according to scientists.

In a clip from America's National Parks provided to Newsweek, a female lava cricket can be seen walking across one of these hardened lava flows.

"Nature has had to adapt to living in this land of fire," Brooks says in his narration for the episode. "After an eruption, she is the first creature to take up residence in this hostile landscape. The ultimate pioneer."

Scientists have found that the small insect, which is about the size of a fingernail, sustains itself by consuming scraps of decaying plants and sea foam that are blown into its harsh environment by the wind.

But aside from this, researchers know next to nothing about the insect with many aspects of its life and behavior still a "complete mystery to science," Anwar Mamon, executive producer of America's National Parks told Newsweek.

"Nobody knows anything about its life cycle. Nobody knows where it goes, where it lives, anything. That's why it's so special," Mamon said. "It survives in one of the most inhospitable places on Earth where oxygen is compromised, where temperatures are ridiculously high, where lava is spewing near it."

Scientists have found that the crickets appear on hardened lava flows from eruptions that occurred as recently as three months prior. But by the time the first vegetation starts to grow in these barren landscapes, the crickets mysteriously disappear.

It feels like it is "not of this planet," Mamon said. "It's still one of these mysteries. We often deal in certainties, but there are a lot of myths and legends out there that are still waiting to be explored and discovered. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park still blows my mind when I think about it in terms of this island made of lava."

America's national parks have "an incredible diversity of landscapes and habitats," Mamon said. And this is what the series aims to explore, as well as relevant human stories.

According to Mamon, the series producers wanted to show people "why the national parks are so precious and important to America—and to the world."

The first national park to be created was Yellowstone, which was established by an act of Congress on March 1, 1872.

But it wasn't until 1916 that the National Park Service (NPS) was born, after President Woodrow Wilson signed an act on August 25 of that year. The act gave the new bureau responsibility for protecting several national parks and monuments that had previously been managed by other government agencies and some that had yet to be established.

Today the National Park system consists of more than 400 different areas spanning 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin Islands.

"I think when you look back at when a lot of [the national parks] were first founded and the idea to protect huge swathes of natural areas, particularly, it was quite a groundbreaking and world-leading strategy, which at the moment has paid dividends," Mamon said.

One of the themes that the series touches upon its that NPS officials alongside numerous scientists and volunteers work hard to protect these ecosystems to keep them in the best condition possible. But these environments are facing increasing challenges, ranging from climate change and nearby developments, to invasive species, among other issues.

"These national parks are incredible, it's great that they're protected for future generations," Mamon said. "But actually, when we look at some of the flora and fauna within national parks, what you start to realize is, of course, [that] everything is connected. They are not islands and everything around them also needs looking after."

"One of our aims with this series is to hopefully inspire people to realize that you need to look after your own backyard, you need to look after everything around you."

Mamon highlighted one of the stories featured in the series from Big Bend National Park in Texas showing the huge migration of the Mexican long-nosed bat, which visits the region every year to feed on the agave plant.

"That benefits the park because it helps the agave plant spread and stay healthy," Mamon said. "But without the bat coming none of that would happen. The bat has made a huge journey from Mexico. And so everything that that bat encounters has to be protected as well as Big Bend National Park.

"I'd like for people to connect with National Parks on a deeper level ... to hopefully respect and understand the importance and significance of [them and] that [they] are there for everyone. But they need protection, they need people to visit them, they need people to understand that they're part of the wider ecosystem. Hopefully, the series will inspire and inform people about that relationship."

The five-part National Geographic Series "America's National Parks" premieres August 29 at 9 p.m. Eastern Time/8 p.m. Central Time on Disney+.