8 Years Ago Idaho Was Invaded... And Now It's Happening Again

It’s not often that Idaho has to deal with too many natural threats, but nearly every ten years the Gem State has to protect itself from a worrisome invasion. Taking over by storm, this year a species of insects is causing more damage than expected in our state and it doesn’t look like the situation is going to be getting better anytime soon.

Bev Sykes/Flickr

Named after the Mormon pioneers who first discovered the bugs, this year is suppose to be abnormally troublesome for Idaho and other states across the country. Currently places like Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming are also dealing with similar invasions of the Mormon crickets.

Thomas Hawk/Flickr

So far this year more than 100 complaints about the invasion of crickets have been made to officials. Those of our residents with farmland are struggling to keep the crickets from devouring their feed and destroying their land. Residents reporting infestations are also stating that the crickets are some of the biggest they've ever seen this year.

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State Farm/Flickr

If you find yourself driving and happen to notice that the roadway before you looks as though it's moving? It could be because you're about to run into a group of crickets taking over the road. Crossing in large groups, the squished crickets leave behind unsafe roadways that are covered in slick slime.

The Police are currently doing their best to work with transportation officials to put up warning signs on roadways that are experiencing an invasion of the crickets, urging drivers on the road to go slowly.

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Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington/Flickr

Unfortunately, no one has yet to determine exactly why it is these crickets are emerging in such larger numbers this year. Female crickets are known to lay up to 100 eggs during the summer, with the eggs hatching next spring. While we can only hope that these crickets cause as little damage as possible, it was just back in 2003 that Idaho had to declare a State of Emergency due to the severe damage that was being caused by these bugs.

Have you been affected by the arrival of the Mormon crickets? Share your stories and photos with us in our comments section to tell us about your own experiences with these nasty critters!