Plague of ‘hoppers

Jace Radke

Saturday, Aug. 1, 1998 | 10:10 a.m.

It is not exactly a biblical plague, but Southern Nevadans are having to deal with an invasion of grasshoppers this summer.

The insects can be found all over the valley, with concentrated populations in fields and around lighted areas at night.

"They are all over the place out here in the parking lot at night," said Jason Lanctot, an employee at Target at 3210 N. Tenaya Way. "I'll be pushing carts in, and I'll get next to a light and they'll jump all over me."

Lanctot, a recent Cimarron-Memorial High School graduate, said he has never seen such a high population of grasshoppers in Las Vegas.

"I've lived here for nine years, and this is crazy," Lanctot said. "I'm from Minnesota, and out there we get a lot of grasshoppers because of the humidity, but here the heat usually kills off these things."

The grasshoppers that residents are seeing now are actually the second generation of a group of Bandwing grasshoppers. The first generation reached maturity in May.

"The second generation will likely be laying eggs in the outlying desert areas soon and that may lead to a third generation," Jeff Knight, Nevada Department of Agriculture entomologist, said. "It all depends on the weather."

The large numbers of the Bandwings are a result of a wet winter followed by a cool spring, Knight said. The area's recent thunderstorms also have helped the population.

"The moisture level is extremely important to this species because it eats grasses that the moisture produces," Knight said. "If it is real hot, they mature faster and die out quickly because of a lack of food."

Candy Caverleg, a junior at Cimarron-Memorial, hopes that the thunderstorms end so she won't have to deal with the third generation of Bandwings.

"I stopped to get some fast food and one jumped in my car," Caverleg said. "It jumped in and I jumped out. It freaked me out. They (grasshoppers) are just gross."

After a few minutes the grasshopper found its way out of Caverleg's car, she said.

The average grasshopper can jump a distance of 5 feet as well as 5 feet high because of their powerful back legs. This jumping ability allows the Bandwings to hop into some unlikely places.

"I was at the Santa Fe (hotel-casino) and a Jeep pulled up and grasshoppers were just falling off the bottom of it," Paul Spiers, who lives in northwest Las Vegas, said. "There are swarms of them out there."

Although there is a large population the Bandwings in Southern Nevada, the insects are not an economic threat as their diet consists mainly of grass. Residents probably will not have to deal with the nuisance for much longer, Knight said.

"They average two generations a year, so if a third is squeezed in it will be the last," he said. "There could be another large population next summer, but it all depends on the weather between now and then."

Maybe that short life span has enticed some of the grasshoppers to look for their 15 minutes of fame before it's too late.

Two grasshoppers repeatedly interrupted Penn & Teller's magic show at Bally's hotel-casino July 25 by buzzing the performers and hopping across the stage. For a finale, one grasshopper shot across the stage and hit Penn Jillette in the head while the magician was performing a trick.