March of the Crickets
Disgusting! The size of a full grown mouse, Mormon crickets are on the march again. They are said to molt seven times in a summer, growing progressively redder until they are finally black. A late, wet spring has made them less of a problem on our ranch this year, but last year my house was covered with them. AAuuuggghh! I went a little crazy. Tim and I spent a couple of hours this morning spreading Eco-Bran, delivered by our local federal Conservation Service agents, which the monstrous insects love, and which kills them deader than a doornail. Then their cannibalistic cousins come to feast on their remains, and they die too. Rumor has it that seagulls are moving into Elko County to eat these creatures: almost nothing else will. CKD photo